


tequila ; s. paulson one - shots

by wrightsmiller



Category: American Horror Story, American Horror Story: Apocalypse, American Horror Story: Asylum, American Horror Story: Coven, American Horror Story: Hotel, American Horror Story: Murder House
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:15:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 22,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27419395
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wrightsmiller/pseuds/wrightsmiller
Summary: sarah paulson + her characters x reader one - shotsrequests always open !!
Relationships: Lou Miller/Debbie Ocean, Sarah Paulson/You
Kudos: 32





	1. criminal (s. paulson)

Switching on your speaker, you pressed shuffle on your music, allowing the sound of Avril Lavigne to filter through your living room as you began drawing some new photos you had found online.

Sarah suddenly burst into the room just as the chorus hit, screeching at the top of her lungs, "WHY DO YOU HAVE TO GO AND MAKE THINGS SO COMPLICATEEEED I SEE THE WAY YOU'RE ACTING LIKE YOU'RE SOMEBODY ELSE GETS ME FRUSTRATEEEED"

You laughed hysterically as she started dancing around and singing in front of you for the duration of the entire song. After the song finished, Sarah bowed to the imaginary audience, sending flying kisses to invisible fans, before collapsing next to you in a fit of giggles.

The next song started playing, Bruno Major's 'easily', one of the staple songs in your playlist, the contents of which Sarah wasn't entirely familiar with.

"You know," you started, "my sister says she hates this song but sings along every time it plays."

Sarah, who had been running her hands through your hair, started laughing, "What? Why?"

"She says it's too 'chill' for her, she's a weirdo, I know," you replied, giggling uncontrollably.

"She's not wrong, though. This song is sleepy. How the fuck did you go from Avril Lavigne to this?"

Bolting upright, you glared at her, "you dare insult my chill music, uncultured swine?"

She placed a hand over her heart and pretended to be offended, scoffing, "Well, my playlist is and always will be better than yours, honey."

Grabbing your phone, you scrolled through your music until you found THE song, "Well, you cannot disagree with this bop, love."

Just then, the starting notes of 'Criminal' started playing, making Sarah jump and make a grab for your phone.

"Y/N TURN THAT THING OFF," she yelled as she started chasing you around your living room.

"NO THANK YOU SARAH," you called back, dancing out of her reach and waving the phone around tauntingly.

The two of you spent more than half the song chasing each other through the kitchen and living room.

"Y/N M/N L/N I SWEAR GIVE ME THAT FUCKING PHONE NOW," she yelled, growing tired from running around.

"Wait, honey, it's almost my favorite part," you held up your hands, in almost surrender, just as the chorus came on, making the older roll her eyes.

"What i need is a good defense, c'mon Sarah, please sing it with me," you begged, giving her the puppy eyes.

She sighed, sat on the couch, and sang anyway, "And I need to be redeemed, to the one I've sinned against, coz he's all I ever knew of love"

Upon hearing her sing, you danced a victory dance and kissed her, pulling her off the couch and starting to dance, "Thank you, love, it's my favorite part,"

"Let me know the way, before there's hell to pay, give me room to lay the law and let me go, I've gotta make a play, to make my lover stay, so what would an angel if the devil wants to know," the two of you started singing and giggling uncontrollably.

The final notes of the song played, signaling the end, and the two of you plopped yourselves onto the sofa, exhausted from running around.

As the two of you lay there contentedly, Sarah's head on your chest while "It Will Rain" by Bruno Mars started playing, you started fondling Sarah's blond and brown hair, "Why do you hate that song so much?"

She sighed dramatically before responding, "It's not the song, I despise seeing or hearing myself and stuff."

Placing a kiss on her head, you asked, "Why? Your voice was amazing, I couldn't stop listening to it. the way your voice is naturally kinda raspy and husky and the way your lisp sounds when you're singing oh my gosh wow," Sarah chuckled as you rambled, pressing a soft kiss to your lips.

"I love you, and fine, I admit, I enjoy singing, but will you please stop playing that song when you're mad at me?"

Playfully frowning at her, you replied, "I only did it because you insulted one of my favorite chill songs ever."

"Okay, if I kinda stop insulting your music taste, will you stop playing that shit here?"

"Hmm," you said, pretending to think deeply, stroking a non existent beard, something you did that always made Sarah laugh and kiss your nose, which is what happened now, "okay, okay, fine, it's a deal."

Smiling, Sarah kissed you softly and sweetly, before saying, "See, we can come to agreements when you aren't running around and waving your phone like an idiot."

"Says the person who runs into the room when she hears a song she knows playing just to screech the lyrics," you retorted, rolling your eyes playfully.

"You know you love me."

"There never was any doubt about it, honey."


	2. shark week (b. d. howard)

"Ow, ow, owww," you groaned, rolling over in bed as your stomach ached relentlessly.

"Baby, are you alright?" your girlfriend asked groggily, disturbed by your constant shifting. You shakily replied, "My stomach hurts. I might have eaten something that doesn't agree with me, or it's that time of month already."

Blinking the sleep out of your eyes, you stumbled out of bed and headed to the bathroom to get a pad. When you returned to your shared bed, Billie was lying peacefully, awake but quiet, waiting for you.

"Are you okay now, sweetheart?" she asked, opening her arms for a cuddle, to which you obliged happily.

"Better now that you're cuddling me," you giggled, but then she frowned.

"How come you never really show the typical symptoms when you're on your period? Most girls are always asking for chocolates and using heating pads and stuff, but you're just really easily pissed off," she questioned, making you laugh.

"Honey, back at home, we were considered overdramatic if we asked for those things. I had to go to school even if I had cramps, find ways to fix my cravings, and just take care of myself."

Billie looked thoughtful for a second, but then pressed a kiss to your cheek before getting up, making you complain, "Billie! Why are you getting up?"

Chuckling, she kissed your pouting lips, "I'm going to make us breakfast, sweetie. I can bring it here if you don't want to get up."

"I'm not a baby, Billie Dean, I can get up."

"Then come on, let's eat bacon and eggs," the older said, offering her hand to help you out of bed, which you took gratefully, dragging your body out of the comfortable bed.

Walking hand in hand had always been your favorite thing, and Billie always loved draping her arm around your shoulders and peppering kisses all over your face, no matter where you were.

Sitting at the kitchen counter, you watched as your girlfriend picked up a frying pan and started cooking your favorite breakfast food, humming a song while doing it.

As you stared at your beautiful girlfriend doing something so sweet for you, you couldn't help but feel a pang of fear that she was much too good for you, that you didn't deserve her.

"What's wrong, honey? I can hear your thoughts running around," the older chuckled softly, flipping the bacon in the pan before placing it on a plate set in front of you.

Brushing stray hairs away from your face, she kissed your forehead gently, "Eat up, babygirl, maybe we can watch a movie later."

"M'kay," you mumbled through a mouthful of food, nodding, "Thank you for the food, this is amazing."

Billie being Billie, she noticed the difference in your expression and hugged you from behind, "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

"Hormones," you shook your head.

"Ooh, what are they saying now? No secrets from me, love," she said, nuzzling into your neck, "Remember, you can tell me anything."

Sighing, you stuffed another forkful of food into your mouth before responding, "I was thinking about how you might leave me one day if you get bored. I feel really lucky to have you, but absolutely terrified you might meet someone more your speed one day."

"Aw, angel, you know you're the only girl I want, right?" she soothed, planting kisses all over your head and neck, "Besides, what do you mean more my speed? I'm honestly still wondering how you can stay one step ahead of my corny jokes."

Swiveling around to hug the older woman, you smiled before responding, "it's an acquired skill, honey."

Billie's arms wrapped around you warmly, and her lips pressed a kiss to yours, before pulling away, "Now finish your food and we can watch a movie plus cuddles," she said, walking to the opposite side of the counter.

"Aw, Billie, you can't leave me hanging!" you pouted.

"Yes, I can honey, besides, you eat so much when you're on your period. I don't want a hungry demon next to me on the bed," she chuckled, ruffling your hair across the countertop.

Playfully glaring at her, you wolfed down the rest of the amazing food she had prepared for you. When you finished, Billie took the plate and left it in the sink, "C'mon, baby, let's go watch."

The older woman walked into your bedroom to get a hoodie and a blanket for you, one of your weird quirks she had grown to love.

"Couch or bedroom?" you inquired, getting the hard drive with your movies.

"I'm feeling couch, but you decide, baby," she called back, coming back with your fluffy blue sweater and navy blanket with stars.

"Couch it is then," you grinned, plugging the hard drive into the tv and turning it on.

"What do you want to watch, honey?"

"Hm, I am looking for an action movie today, but I also want to watch a rom com. weird."

"Well, pick. One or two?"

"One."

"Then we're watching an action movie. Are you feeling Marvel? Something else?"

"Let's watch The Winter Soldier then Civil War? Are you ok with that?"

Billie smiled at you, "I'm good with anything. Now come here and let's cuddle."

Pulling on the hoodie, you curled up, leaning your head against Billie's chest, feeling her running her fingers through your hair. Surrendering to her warmth, you turned your attention to the movie, which you had seen so many times but couldn't get enough of.

When Natasha and Steve were in the mall together, Billie scoffed, making you glance up at her, "You only want to watch this because they get screentime together. How many times are we going to talk about how they will never end up together?"

"Don't shame my ship, Howard. I know they're not meant to be in the movies."

"Sorry, baby, I would rather ship the actors than the characters," the older shyly apologized, placing a kiss to your head.

"You're a lot nicer to me than my family when I'm on my period. How did I get so lucky?"

"Well, I'm lucky too. Remember when I accidentally bled through the bed on the morning of an important shoot? I came home and saw the bedsheets freshly changed and all the stained stuff hanging to dry, and then I looked in the living room and saw you passed out on the couch. "

"Well, when I'm on my period, you're the one who has amazing food waiting when I get home. Remember when you made that carbonara with bacon? Mmm, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it."

"Then stop thinking about it," Billie said with a laugh.

"Hey, Billie?"

"Yes, angel?"

"Can you kiss me, please?"

"You don't even have to ask."


	3. hairstyling (w. venable)

You were not a fussy girl when it came to hair. A simple ponytail or messy bun was all you could manage with all the things you had to do.

Wilhemina, on the other hand, always had perfect hair. How she managed to style it to match her outfit and make-up, you had no idea.

Her flaming red hair was much longer than yours, almost falling to her waist, and yet instead of showing it off, she kept it pulled in a neat bun always.

Frustrated, you rewinded the video, trying to achieve a braided hairband but failing miserably. You had been sitting in the living room attempting hairstyle after hairstyle, trying to find the one that worked for you. How did Mina always manage to make hers look amazing?

Peeking into your shared bedroom where she was sitting on your bed reading, you knocked softly on the door and asked, "Mina? Are you busy?"

"No, dear, do you need anything?" she replied, putting her book down on the bed.

"Well," you scratched your nape nervously, "I was looking for a hairstyle that worked for me, and I wanted to ask how you do it because your hair always looks amazing. But of course, if you don't want to tell me, it's ok."

Mina chuckled softly, showing you her long red hair tied back in a French braid, "What kind of help do you need, darling?"

Marveling at the perfection of her hairstyle, you sat on the bed next to her and asked, "Can you help me tie my hair? I'm not used to having it long."

"Of course, sweetheart, just get a stool, I can't really bend over so much."

She smiled softly, seeing your retreating figure racing to find a footstool to sit on, and that smile didn't leave, not even when you sat in front of her, handing her your hairbrush and a box of accessories.

"Hm, what do you want me to do, honey?" Mina asked, brushing your hair gently.

You were quiet for a while, enjoying the soft strokes of her graceful hands, before replying, "I don't know, whatever you think will look good on me."

Pausing in her work for a while, the older woman started separating sections in your hair and braiding them gently but still firm enough that it wouldn't unravel instantly.

"Mina?"

"Hm?"

"Why are you so good at doing hair?"

Chuckling at your question, she replied, "I don't know, honey. I just studied and practiced on my hair, I guess?"

"How come I can't do it? The hairstyles I find are so difficult to do."

"You can practice on me if you want," gently turning your head to the right, she still managed to answer all your questions while braiding your lustrous hair, "Didn't anyone tie you hair as a child?"

"I preferred short hair when I was younger, which is why people called me a tomboy. A simple hairband was enough for me."

"Well, darling, we can always cut your hair, you know."

"I want to use some of my vanity on my hair, I'm committed to growing it as long as yours, Mina."

"What vanity, dear?" she asked, turning your head to the left to get the other side done, "You're not vain or shallow or anything like that."

This reply wasn't what you expected, so you laughed softly, making sure to keep still, "Oh, Mina, I love dressing up and using make-up and feeling attractive."

"Wanting to feel good about your appearance is not completely the same as being vain. To me, vanity is healthy to a certain degree, but if your desire to look good starts to override other things in your life, then maybe you need to re-evaluate things," she spoke in her normal soft manner, but with conviction, nonetheless.

Both of you were quiet for a while, and the silence was only broken when Mina tied off the ends of your hair, "Done, let's see what you think. "

Looking into a mirror, you almost couldn't believe it was your hair.

"Wow, Mina, thank you so much!" you exclaimed in delight at the miracle she had worked on your normally messy hair.

She merely smiled at you and removed the elastic she had on the end of her braid, "Now, try something on me. Do something I normally wouldn't use."

Kneeling on the bed behind her, you nervously held her hair and brushed it, trying not to pull too hard. You took a few sections of her hair and braided it gently, one of the few ways you knew how to.

The two of you sat in comfortable silence, and although she would never really directly tell you, she rather enjoyed watching your face in the mirror, scrunched up in concentration, your tongue peeking out from the corner of your mouth.

Tying off the ends, you proudly exclaimed, "There, done!"

Examining it in the mirror, all she could say was, "Wow, you said you weren't all that good, now I say you're a liar. This is amazing!"

You wrapped your arms around your girlfriend, inhaling the intoxicating flowery scent of her red hair and placing soft kisses all over her.

"Love you, Mina," you mumbled into her lustrous locks, to which she smiled and replied, "Love you too, Y/N."

You pulled away from the hug and lay on the bed, opening your arms, "Cuddle me, Mina?"

Rolling her eyes, she climbed into bed with you, arms wrapped around your smaller frame, "Thank you for today, Y/N," she said softly.

"You're welcome, Ms. Venable," you replied, pressing a soft kiss to her lips, "Thank you, Mina."

"For what, sweet girl?"

"For being here with me."

"Darling, there's no place I'd rather be."


	4. bet (c. goode)

"Madison, no, I can't do this," you groaned to the blonde witch next to you on the couch, who rolled her eyes at your pathetic excuses, "Delia is going to kill us both."

"Well, you do want to get her attention, don't you? It's the perfect way. We just need to get permission to go out, and it's a Saturday, anyway. "

Running a hand through your long dark hair, your thoughts spiraled, going back to the past week, when you and Madison were mildly drunk and came up with the most stupid bet ever to exist.

"If I can get more people to scold me for a sexy outfit than you, you have to do a dare I give you," the blonde beside you slurred with a giggle.

Slapping her lightly on the arm, you laughed, "You're on, bitch."

So that week on the agreed date, both of you showed up to classes wearing the most revealing and scandalous outfit you had.

But of course, she had been scolded by every single person, including the headmistress, beating you by a single reprimand  


"Hello? Y/N? Are you there?" Madison asked, snapping her fingers in front of you to break your trance.

As you stood up suddenly, you tied your hair back into a messy bun and responded, "Let's go. I'll get us permission from Delia."

Stuffing your hair into a black beanie, you walked to the supreme's office, knocking gently, "Come in," her soft voice called.

You nervously entered the spacious office, playing with the hem of your oversized shirt you were wearing over jeans and sneakers.

"Is there anything you need, Y/N?" Cordelia asked kindly, looking up from her laptop. You took a deep breath before responding, "Can Madison and I get permission to go to the mall today?"

Pushing up her glasses through her blonde hair, she was thoughtful for a second, eventually replying, "Sure, just make sure to be back for dinner."

"Thank you," you said, shying out of the room and walking down the stairs to meet an expectant Madison, who sashayed out the front door before you, yelling, "Let's get you your woman, bitch!"

A few hours later, the two of you were walking back to the school, the slowly setting sun in your line of sight. Swinging the front door open, you entered, quietly, as not to attract to much attention.

"Girls, dinner!" Cordelia's voice called from the dining room just as you stepped into the house. Madison walked past you, excited to eat, while you trailed behind her nervously.

Taking your seat next to Zoe, you drummed your fingers on the table and cracked your knuckles, habits the others found very irritating. As you all waited for the others, Cordelia sat down at the head of the table and absentmindedly straightened the cuffs of her blouse.

Just as the last girls took their places at the table, all of you were given permission to start eating the delicious food in front of you, which you normally would have devoured like a starving person, but today you were extremely paranoid about what you and Madison had been doing.

Making sure to slowly chew and swallow your food, your running thoughts were halted when someone, who was none other than your crush, called your name, "Y/N, dear, take your hat off. It's disrespectful to the food."

All eyes were suddenly on you, your black hat the center of attention. In the corner of your eye, you glimpsed Madison smirking and sending you an encouraging wink, which didn't help at all.

Mouth still full, you fixed your gaze on your plate, barely half empty, and reached up to take off your beanie, trying to ignore the collective gasps around you as the result of the dare was revealed to everyone.

Your originally long hair had been lopped off and bleached in various colors, a lot more conspicuous than its previous dark shade  
Your originally long hair had been lopped off and bleached in various colors, a lot more conspicuous than its previous dark shade. Picking at your food, you continued eating, still refusing to make any eye contact.

"Alright, girls, enough staring, get back to your food," the supreme's stern voice reprimanded, after which you no longer felt the burning glare of your schoolmates' gazes.

Dinner seemed to take a lot longer than usual, and you were more than grateful when Cordelia sent you all to your rooms. even if it meant you had to hear Madison gloating about how she was right.

Now clad in loose shorts and a shirt, you lay in bed, flipping through a book and running your hand through your freshly washed silver hair, missing the length that had been chopped off.

Your roommate, blonde hair now damp from the shower, pulled on her silk pajamas quietly before sitting on her bed. She was using her phone when she decided to speak, "You know, Delia seemed to find it hard to not look at you. I know you hate to hear it, but I'm sure my plan to get her to notice you is working."

With a scoff, you turned the page of your book, "Yeah, but I'm pretty sure she doesn't find me attractive anyway. She'll probably just tell me off and then forget about it."

You could actually feel Madison rolling her eyes at your response, "Yeah, right. I used to catch her staring at you even before our bet. She hasn't looked at a girl like that since, you know, Misty."

"Touchy subject, Montgomery," you scolded, but she just shrugged and raised her hands in surrender.

Leaning back into your pillows, you closed your eyes, ready to sleep, when a knock sounded on the closed door, "Y/N? Could you come out here, please?" Cordelia asked softly, making you and your roommate glance at each other in surprise. Quickly standing and fixing your appearance, you called back, "Coming!"

Madison started victory dancing and as you left, she whisper-yelled at your retreating figure, "good luck with your girl, Y/N," before laughing hysterically.

Nervously pushing your hair back, you walked towards the supreme, who was leaning against the wall, wearing a lavender nightgown that fell to her ankles. Upon seeing you, she smiled and held out her hand, "Come, let's talk in my room. Your roommate seems to be very excited about something," motioning to Madison who was still victory dancing crazily.

"I honestly don't know what she's so happy about," you replied with a chuckle, taking her soft, warm hand in yours. She led you down the hall, scoffing, "Oh, I'm sure you know much more than that."

The two of you stopped outside her bedroom door, which she opened and gestured for you to come in. Upon entering, you marveled at the clean, picture-perfect way everything was arranged. Her bed was covered with pristine white sheets, the moonlight illuminating every detail.

She lay down and patted the spot next to her, motioning for you to sit there. As you lay, you couldn't help but gaze in amazement at the moonlight streaming through the window next to the bed. You stayed there, just staring at the night sky, unaware of the older woman's gaze, still fixed on you.

"What did you call me for?" you asked, finally breaking the silence. She shifted her gaze to the window before replying, "I was going to ask if you did that to your hair because I didn't scold you for that outfit last week."

"Bold of you to assume it was for you," you joked, hoping to deflect. But it didn't work.

"Then what was it for?"

You tensed visibly, which didn't go unnoticed by the older woman. After a few seconds of awkward silence, you finally spoke, "I lost a bet to Madison. The punishment was accepting a dare."

Laughing softly, she responded, "What was the bet?"

"Whoever got scolded more for their outfit would give the loser a dare. She beat me by one person. That was you," you replied, muttering the last part under your breath, but of course she heard it, she was the supreme after all.

"Did you really think you needed to do that crazy stunt just for me to notice you?" she inquired curiously, looking at you with amusement.

"You never really seem to notice me, and I was kinda drunk," you admitted shamefully. The older simply laughed, "Bold of you to assume I haven't noticed you," using your words against you.

You sat up, starting to crack your knuckles again, but she placed a hand over yours, "Stop that, it's bad for your hands," but you couldn't, because you were so uncomfortable and scared she would finally find out the feelings you had been harboring.

"You can tell me what you're thinking, dear, I can hear your brain gears turning," she said gently with a smile, easing your nerves a little.

"I kinda like you, I guess," you mumbled, "Not that you have to like me back. Madison said this dare was so I would catch your attention."

Resigned, you slumped back onto the soft bed, and there was silence for a while, before a quiet confession broke it.

"You've had my attention for quite some time now, dear. I guess I like you too."

It took a full 15 seconds for her words to register in your brain, but when it did, you faced her and asked, "Wait, are you serious?" making her chuckle softly.

"Yes, I am, honey."

"Madison said she caught you staring at me before, but it seems too good to be true."

Cupping your cheek in her hand, she replied, "Well it is, sweetheart."

"Um, Delia, can I kiss you?"

"Of course, love," she said before your lips met, and this being your first time, it was even better than you imagined. It was gentle, yet loving and passionate. You wished it could have lasted forever, but because oxygen was necessary, the two of you broke apart, cheeks flushed.

"Wow, that was an amazing first kiss."

"Was that your first? Well then, I'll make sure the next ones are better than just amazing."


	5. sick (a. mayfair - richards)

"Crap," you groaned, rolling over to turn off your alarm. With a huff, you turned, facing the beautiful brunette who was still sleeping soundly.

Being a teacher had always been your dream, but recently, the late nights grading papers had taken its toll. Your wife had been catching you at 2am in the kitchen, reading through countless essays. While she never felt neglected or lacking attention from you, she knew your health would be the one to suffer.

With a sniffle, you dragged yourself out of the comfortable warmth of Ally's embrace, making your way to your closet to get ready. You needed maximum warmth, so you selected an outfit not unlike the ones your wife was fond of wearing. Pulling on a turtleneck sweater and pants, you stifled a cough behind your hands, not wanting to alert the older woman to your condition.

"Honey, why are you getting up already," Ally mumbled from the bed, voice raspy with sleep, "It's early."

Placing a kiss on your wife's forehead, you replied, "It's time for me to get up, love. I have classes all day today," making her roll her eyes in exasperation. "Why do you have to get up so early and ruin my sleep?"

"Not my fault you decided to marry me, Ally," you retorted, rubbing your itchy nose.

"I wouldn't trade it for anything, baby," she answered, now awake and lazily getting out of bed, "Your voice sounds hoarse, Y/N, are you sure you're well enough to teach today?"

"Seriously, angel, you worry too much," huffing, you pulled a pair of socks from the drawers, "I'll be fine."

"The second you have a fever, you're coming home," the older woman said, wrapping her arms around you from behind, "I can't have my wife spreading germs around."

Rolling your eyes, you wriggled out of her grasp and kissed her before heading to the bathroom to brush your teeth, "I won't get a fever, Allyson. There's no need to get worked up over my husky voice."

"But still, Y/N," she chided, "If your temperature goes up, I'm taking you home."

Now clean and fresh, you walked over to her and pressed a kiss to her lips, "Yes, ma'am, I will tell you if my temperature goes up."

Pulling on your coat, you waved one last time before heading to work. The school was about 10 minutes away from your shared apartment, so you preferred walking. As you set your bag down in the classroom, a headache suddenly presented itself, pounding at you relentlessly. This was going to be a long day.

★★★

Once the last student left, you slumped on your desk, utterly drained. Your headache hadn't been relieved by all the water you forced down your aching throat, and the layers you were wearing didn't really stop the shivers you were getting. As you lay your head on your arms, you drifted off in your exhaustion.

What you didn't know was that Ally knew you well enough to know you were lying for the sake of going to work. After the third time she unsuccessfully tried to call your phone, she got into the car and drove to school.

Knocking softly on the classroom door, she entered, seeing you passed out on your desk, shivering, "Y/N, honey," Ally said, shaking your shoulders gently, "You're burning up, let's go home."

Like a small child, you groaned, "I'm tired," allowing your wife to help you make your way to the car, "I know you are, stupid. Why did I let you go to work again?" she asked.

"Because I'm awesome and you love me," you grinned, mildly sleep drunk, making Ally roll her eyes. "I do love you, but awesome isn't really what I would call you, love."

The entire drive home, you were half-asleep, still shivering, and once you got home, Ally helped you get to your shared bedroom, where she forced you to remove your clothes to change.

"Allyyyyy," you complained, feeling the cold air biting at your bare skin, "It's cold."

"I know it is, honey, but endure it for a while, okay?" she said, guiding you to the bed before exiting the room, "I have to wipe you down first before you can sleep."

Grumbling and still shivering, you followed her command, staying on the bed quietly as she came back with a washcloth and a small basin of water.

Gentle as always, Ally used the washcloth to wipe every inch of your body in attempts to cool the burning skin. Once she was done, she gave you a sweater and pajamas, letting you burrow underneath the covers.

"Can you eat for me, honey?" she asked kindly, "You need something in your stomach before you can drink your medicine."

Hesitantly, you nodded, knowing she only wanted you to get better, "My throat hurts, Ally," you replied hoarsely, to which she just nodded, "I'll make you some soup, can you eat that?"

"Only if it's ramen," you joked, making her laugh and place a kiss on your forehead, "Yes, ma'am, ramen it is. I'll be right back."

After a while, she came back, holding a bowl of instant noodles, your favorite kind, which despite your extreme fatigue still made you sit up excitedly.

"I appreciate your enthusiasm, Y/N, but please eat slowly," she chuckled, gently tying your hair back. You started devouring your food while she changed her clothes into more comfortable ones.

Having eaten all you could handle, you set the bowl on the nightstand, "Ally, can you cuddle me?"

"Let me just get your medicine, honey," she replied, "Are you feeling better?"

"Just cold now," you mumbled softly as she climbed into your bed. Wrapping her arms around you, she placed a hand on your forehead, checking your temperature. She then handed you your medicine, which you drank obediently.

"Go to sleep, honey," she said, tucking the covers around you neatly.

"Stay, please?"

"I'm not going anywhere."


	6. christmas carols (xandra)

"Wake up, wake up, wake up!" you yelled at your best friend, who happened to be underneath you, burrowing under her covers, "Let's eat, I'm fucking hungryyy," you persisted, shaking her awake.

"Let me sleep, Y/N," Xandra grumbled, lazily trying to push you off, "Go eat by yourself."

Sighing dramatically, you replied, "You leave me no choice, Xandra with an x."

"If you start singing, I will physically attack you," Xandra's voice came muffled from under you.

"We wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, we wish you a merry Christmas, and a happy new yeaaar," you warbled, very very off-key, making the older woman poke her head out of the blankets.

"It's fucking August, Y/N," Xandra groaned, "And a promise is a promise."

Grabbing you by the hips, she reversed your positions and sat on your stomach while her hands started assaulting you everywhere, from your neck to your sides, she knew every weak spot.

"Xandra," you gasped, out of breath from giggling, "please...stop"

"What's the magic word, honey?" she replied, continuing to poke your sides, eliciting yet another fit of laughter, "Pretty please?" you managed to choke out shakily.

"Fine, you brat," Xandra rolled her eyes, laying next to you on the bed, "You're lucky I'm nice."

"Of course...you are," you said, chest heaving, cheeks still red, "That's   
why I love you."

Getting up, she patted your head gently, "Aw, I love you too, you big baby. Now let's go eat," she said, dragging you out of bed.

As you sat on a chair in the kitchen, Xandra brought out a frying pan and pointed it at you like Rapunzel, "Bacon and eggs or pancakes?"

"Pancakes, duh," you answered, rolling your eyes once she had turned away.

"Don't you roll your eyes at me, Y/N, or you're cooking your own food."

"What makes you think I did, huh?"

"I could feel the disrespect coming from you, stupid."

Huffing, you placed your chin in your hand, "Figures."

As the smell of cooking food filled the air, you sat quietly, observing the older blonde while she was working. And then something very weird happened.

"I don't want a lot for Christmas, there is just one thing I need," you heard her singing softly under her breath, making you furrow your brows. "Are you singing? More importantly, is that a Christmas song I hear?"

"I wasn't singing, dumbo," she lied, which earned an eye roll and a "yeah, right," from you.

"Even if I was singing, which I wasn't," she defended, still not taking her eyes off the food, "what does it matter to you?"

Crossing your arms over your chest, you glared at her, "You constantly tell me I'm off-key, I'm just waiting for you to sing so I can repay the favor."

"Well, duh, you are off-key, Y/N," she replied, placing the pancakes on a plate at the table, "and I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you."

"Why wouldn't you?" you asked, getting up to get some juice from the fridge, "I heard you singing just now, just admit it."

"You have no evidence that I was singing," Xandra said, taking a bite of the pancakes that she had drowned in syrup, "therefore even if I did, you wouldn't be able to prove it."

You smiled as you took a sip of the drink in your hand, "So you do admit you were singing. And a Christmas song, no less."

"You and your obsession with Christmas songs."

"Just tell me the truth, Xandra. You were singing, why won't you admit it?"

Swallowing the food, she picked up your glass and took a sip before replying, "If I were to admit I was singing, you'd make fun of me because my voice is awful."

"Honestly, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't hearing things. Your voice is awesome," you said, mouth full of pancakes, "And you're a hypocrite. Singing Christmas songs in August."

With a laugh, Xandra tucked a hair behind her ear, "I just like scolding you. Sometimes I catch myself singing out of season songs when I'm alone."

"Well, you should sing more now that I have caught you in the act," you responded, still chewing, "Think about it, a friend who sings Christmas songs with me in the middle of the year."

"As much as I'd love that, I'll pass."

"I think I may be able to make you agree to my conditions," you said, smiling mischievously.

★★★

Xandra sat on the couch, scrolling through her phone, when you ran into the living room and started dancing, "Jingle bell jingle bell jingle bell rock"

"It's not going to work, Y/N," she sing-songed, not even looking up at you.

"Worth a shot," you mumbled, walking out, trying to think of a way to make her crack.

★★★

As the two of you sat on your bed, folding the freshly washed clothes, you started whistling a tune that you hoped would get her to sing along.

"Y/N, I don't think whistling Frosty the Snowman will make me sacrifice my dignity," she chuckled, not looking up from the white shirt she was folding.

"How can I get you to do it?" you groaned frustratedly, which made her laugh softly and pat your head, "Don't worry, it'll happen when it's meant to."

"That doesn't sound very promising, Xandra," you mumbled, earning only a hair ruffle from the older woman.

★★★

After dinner, you lingered in the kitchen for a while, where Xandra was drying the dishes you had just washed, before running to your room and putting on your Santa hat with the lights.

If she wasn't going to join you, then it was her loss. Turning on the small lights, you started dancing around holding your favorite stuffed animal, singing, "Santa babyyyy just slip a sable under the treeee for meeee"

You managed to belt out almost the entire song, but just as you were getting to your favorite part, you heard someone laughing from the doorway.

"And here I was, coming to apologize," Xandra giggled, "Seems like you're having enough fun without me, huh?"

Quickly turning off your hat and throwing it into your closet, you laughed nervously, inching away from her, "I don't know what you're talking about, Xandra."

"Oh, is that a lie I smell?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at you, still shying away, "You know what I like to do to liars, right?"

She shut and locked the door, depriving you of your escape. As you backed away towards your bed, she started coming closer, ready to attack.

When you made a break for the door, she grabbed your arm and pinned you to the bed, blowing raspberries on your neck and using her fingers to poke your sides. You kept giggling and shrieking, but she was relentless with her punishment.

"Please...stop," you managed, gasping for air, "Pretty please?"

Pulling away from you, she stood there, looking satisfied with her work. Her work meaning you, red faced and gasping like a fish out of water.

"Let's go to sleep, Y/N," she yawned, "I'm exhausted."

"You're exhausted? What about me?" you protested, pulling yourself to your pillows, before looking at her and pouting, "Sleep with me tonight?"

"Hey, you brought it upon yourself," she retorted before lying next to you, "Fine, only because you asked nicely."

"Aw, you love me," you smirked, snuggling into her side before she pressed a light kiss to your head.

"Damn right I do."

★★★

"Y/NNNN," Xandra whined from on top of you, who was struggling to get her off, "Wake up, wake up, wake up!"

"No," you mumbled, pulling a pillow over your head, "I'm sleepy."

"You leave me no choice, then," she sighed, before singing, much more in tune than your version, "I don't want a lot for Christmaaas there is just one thing I neeeed don't care about the presents underneath the Christmas treeee"

Shocked, you stopped squirming, hypnotized by the beauty of her voice as she continued, "I just want you for my own more than you could ever knowwww make my wish come trueeeee"

"All I want for Christmaaas issss youuuuu," you yanked the pillow off your head and sang the last part with her, making her grin widely, "I knew it would work."

She moved off you and lay there beside you in silence for a while before you asked, "Why didn't you ever tell me your voice was amazing?"

"I never said it wasn't," she giggled, ruffling your hair like always. You rolled your eyes and hugged her, resting your head on her steadily beating heart.

"Hey, Xandra? I love you."

"I know."

"What the actual fuck."

"Well, I love you too. Happy now?"

"Very."


	7. scars (c. goode)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw // mentions of self harm, depression, suicide, etc

You stood in front of your dresser drawers, wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around your body, trying to pick out which pajamas to wear for the night when a someone spoke from the doorway.

"Wow, what a view. I came to check on you but I guess I can settle on checking you out," the soft voice of the supreme rang out through the silence, making you jump.

"Jesus, Delia, what the hell? I nearly had a heart attack!" you frantically grabbed for a shirt in the open drawer, your actions making the older chuckle softly.

She walked over right after you had managed to wrestle into your oversized black shirt, pulling you in a hug.

Breathing a sigh of relief, you wrapped your arms around the older woman, who started giggling, which earned a confused look from you.

"What?" you asked, bewildered. She merely showed you the shirt's tag that was against your chest.

"That's what you get for hurrying, dear," she said amusedly as she pressed a kiss to your forehead before moving to take off your shirt, "Let me help you."

Slowly backing away, you shook your head, "No, Delia, I'll do it."

She cocked her head questioningly but shrugged. Moving towards your clothes closet, she selected a set of clothes, a black tank top and black cycling shorts and handed it to you.

"If you're going to take off that shirt, why not wear these?" she offered, fixing the hem of her lavender nightgown.

You were momentarily speechless, but took it anyway, "Y-yeah, give me a sec."

She was noticing your growing nervousness and sat on your bed, the left side, her side, "Is there anything you want to tell me, dear? You're normally not this nervous around me."

"Well, normally, I'm fully clothed." you mumbled as you pulled on your underwear and the shorts, hesitating to take off the shirt.

This did not go unnoticed by your girlfriend, whose worry was beginning to increase at your actions.

"Dear, I have seen girls without clothes when I have to treat injuries. It's not that big a deal."

You sighed, taking off your shirt and putting on the one she picked.

She patted the spot next to her and you sat there, allowing yourself tp be wrapped in her hugs and soft kisses on your head.

"Honey, you know I love you, right?" she asked, to which you could only nod, "And I don't want to see you uncomfortable or hurt. So could you tell me what's on your mind, sweetheart?"

You took a deep breath, took off your shirt and lay on your stomach, your head on her lap.

You felt her hands gently trace over the scars you had on your shoulders, some pink, most white, and one particularly an angry red.

She pressed a kiss to your head, "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked kindly, handing you your top, which you put on and snuggled into her arms.

"When I was in 6th grade, the zipper of my bag fell off and it was pretty sharp. I just tried dragging it across my arm," you started, showing her some very faint scars on your right forearm, while she started running her hands through your hair.

"I never thought there was anything wrong with it. At first I showed it off actually, and with the reaction I got from people, I learned that it was frowned upon. The guidance counselor at our school suggested maybe I wanted attention, so I said that was it.

"After that, I used a pair of scissors to slice my inner thighs, but I got busted, and that's when I learned it had to be my little secret. Some of my friends said that my classmate hid hers under her watch, so for a long time I would do that.

"I once tried it on my face and got busted, but they didn't understand that sometimes I would think, I want a scar on my face, and that day I decided to act on it.

"But then I was examining myself in the mirror once and I decided to try my shoulders. It was almost a perfect plan. I was bored to no end, and I could get dressed in the privacy of the bathroom. So I started slicing myself using a small blade.

"That was when I realized why people did it and why they hid it. It was such a dark pleasure in seeing the dark blood streaming down my body, and feeling the sting as I showered after, and while sleeping.

"I told one person about it, and since then I haven't really done it so much as I did on my shoulders, I guess, but it's tempting to slice my wrist so I can suck the blood sometimes.

"I used to slice my wrists with a cutter when I got frustrated with myself, but my friends caught me and asked me if I wanted to seek help, but I think if I ever asked for help, they'd think I was making a big deal out of things, you know?

"Sometimes I wonder why people always ask me to stop. The main reason I tried to stop was because I don't want to have to explain myself when they would never understand me.

"The main thing that sucks is that it's always been my dream to wear halter tops and sleeveless clothes, but if I ever do, people will ask me what these are, and that's happened, but sometimes it's tiring to lie, you know?"

You felt Cordelia's lips plant kisses everywhere, from your head, to your neck, to those ugly scars.

"Look at me, please, Y/N," she spoke softly, and when you did, she kissed your lips softly and passionately, showing you what could not be said in words.

"As much as I want you to not hurt yourself, I can't make that decision for you," she said in a worried tone as she squeezed your hand, "But please, never for a second, think of keeping these secrets from me because you think I wouldn't understand,"

"I just don't want you to be ashamed of me, Delia," you mumbled, to which she responded by brushing some stray hairs from your face, "Y/N, sweetheart, why would I be ashamed of you? I love you, and having one bad habit won't change that. You are and always will be beautiful in my eyes."

As you turned out the lights and snuggled close, you could feel her hands delicately tracing her fingers over all the marks the blade had left and her lips pressing kisses against your head. In that moment, it almost felt like even those scars were beautiful too.


	8. midnight snack (s. paulson)

Rolling over in bed, you felt your stomach rumble in hunger and for about 10 minutes, you ignored it, trying to get back to sleep in your lover's embrace.

After a while, the urge to eat became unbearable, so you quietly and discreetly slipped out of Sarah's arms, creeping out of your bedroom and into the kitchen. The floors were cold under your bare feet, and you tried as much as possible to muffle any sounds you might make. As you wanted to be cautious and undetectable, you grimaced every time you heard anything, from the click of the light switch to the creaking of the floorboards. Checking the fridge for leftovers, you were saddened to find nothing much to eat except for some bread and other spreads, just enough for a sandwich.

Still making sure to keep quiet, you spread some peanut butter onto the slice of bread and devoured it, browsing through your phone. Eating a second sandwich, you sat with your back to the door, absentmindedly swinging your legs and taking sips of your orange juice. All the while still making as little sound as you could.

"Y/N?" you heard from behind you, making you jump and yelp, "What the fuck?"

With your caution, you thought you could get away with your illegal eating, but unfortunately, something had woken your girlfriend up and alerted her to your late-night activities.

"I think I should be the one asking you that, love," she laughed, voice still raspy with sleep, "Why are you eating a sandwich at 2am?"

Swallowing the mouthful of food, you mumbled, "Got hungry," with a shameful look on your face.

"Well, now I'm hungry too. What do you want to eat?" the older woman said, wrapping her arms around you and kissing the back of your head.

You could only shake your head in disbelief, "Are you seriously going to cook in the middle of the night?"

"It's never too early or too late for food, honey," she replied, crossing her arms over her chest, "I'm feeling Spam and eggs, what do you think?"

"You know me, Sarah," you said with a smile, sipping your drink, "As long as it's food, I'm good."

Pushing her short hair back, she pulled a frying pan from the shelf and started to heat some butter, "Can you slice the Spam, honey?"

"Sure," you answered, obediently starting the task, smelling the eggs frying in the pan, "How did you know I was awake?"

"I felt your warmth disappear, doofus," placing the eggs on a plate you had prepared, she turned to you and took some of the spam to fry, "And you're not exactly the most silent person, you know. After I felt you leave the bed, I heard your footsteps and the fridge door and the cabinet-"

"Okay, okay, stop," you protested, "I don't need to hear all the details of my incompetence."

With a smirk, she continued frying the food, "Although, I was pretty hungry myself. I'm just kinda disappointed you didn't think I'd like to eat with you."

"What makes you say I didn't want to eat with you?" you said, hugging her from behind, "I just didn't want to drag you out of bed. I know how cranky you can get."

Scoffing, she placed the rest of the food on the plate, switched off the stove and turned to hug you tightly. You stayed there for a while, just basking in the warmth of one another and feeling the steady beating of your hearts.

"Now let's eat, I'm fucking hungry," Sarah said, pulling away and sitting at the table. Which of course, made you roll your eyes at her.

"Way to ruin the moment, Paulson."

"What? I am hungry," she questioned, mouth full, "C'mon, eat with me."

Taking your seat across from her, you put a forkful of the freshly cooked food in your mouth and as always, were impressed by her skills.

"You know, your friends make it seem like you're bad at cooking," you remarked, "But then every time you make us food, I remember how prejudiced they are."

"They're just jealous," she said, swallowing.

"Of course they are, honey, you're dating me, that's reason enough to be jealous."

"Hilarious."

Glaring at her, you pointed your fork towards her, "You take that back, Paulson."

"Why would I do that? You're no fun," she replied, kissing your forehead lightly.

"You can't evade this, Sarah," pouting, you stared pointedly at her, "I'll get my revenge on you."

"You do that, I'm going to go back to sleep," she yawned, stretching, "Feel free to join me."

"Did you really just leave me with the dishes? Oh, I'm not done with this abuse," you whined as the older woman made to go back to the bedroom, "Saraaahhhh"

"Leave it for tomorrow, let's cuddle, Y/N," she said, leaning against the doorframe, "You know you want to."

"What if I don't?" you replied, eating the last of the food that was left behind.

"Then I'll take your stuffed toy and cuddle with it instead. I'm not pushy."

"Fuck you, Paulson, you don't play fair," you yelped, hurriedly placing the dishes in the sink and attempting to beat her to your room. The keyword being 'attempted', because no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't get past her, "Why are you doing this to me?"

"You said you wouldn't cuddle with me, and I need leverage to make sure you do," she said nonchalantly, still blocking your attempts, "Now say you'll cuddle or I tickle you."

"Never!" you exclaimed, managing to crawl between her legs and bolting towards your room.

"You little fucker!" you heard Sarah yell, running after you, "You asked for it!"

You somehow made it to your room and took your stuffed toy, clutching it close to your chest, just as your girlfriend shoved the door open and glared at you. There was something rather comical about the situation, maybe it was the way the was standing, similar to a battle-ready soldier, or maybe it was how you were clinging onto your doll like it was the last livesaver on the titanic.

Taking her time, she walked towards you, hands ready to attack. As you tried to back away, she grabbed hold of your wrist and pinned you against the wall, breathing lightly on your neck.

"Fuck, Sarah, this isn't fair!" you shrieked, feeling the goosebumps slowly creeping up your arms, just as she began her attack, fingers poking your sides, which started a fit of hysterical giggles and screams from you.

"Sarah...stop," you coughed out, "Please!"

"Say you're sorry and that you'll cuddle with me," she replied, looking up from your neck and grinning devilishly.

"I'm...sorry, ok? I'll cuddle...with you!" in between laughs and shrieks, you somehow managed to choke out the words, making her stop her assault.

"Good," she said, picking up the doll that had fallen on the floor and slumping onto the bed, "Now come here."

Gratefully crashing next to her, you allowed yourself to be enveloped in her embrace, your breathing still heavy. As you lay your head on her chest, you felt her combing your hair with her slender fingers when she spoke.

"Hey, love, I never really planned to take your doll, you know?"

"I know you didn't," you replied, and as you drifted off to sleep in her arms, you couldn't help the smile that tugged at your lips when she kissed your forehead and whispered,

"I love you."


	9. neck kisses (b. d. howard)

"Where's my sweet girl?" turning the page of a fanfiction you were reading, you heard a familiar voice come from the doorway, the voice that you had been missing all day, "Billie!"

As you wrapped the older woman in a tight hug, inhaling the familiar scent of flowers and cigarettes, you mumbled, "I missed you," against the crook of her neck, which earned you a soft laugh and a kiss on the top of your head, "I only went to work, honey."

"It felt like forever, plus I don't really have much to do on free days," you whined, dragging Billie by her arm to the couch. She sat down and patted the space next to her, but you, being the clingy baby you are, sat down on her lap, placing her arms around your waist like a seatbelt.

The two of you sat there in comfortable silence, your head rested on her shoulder, her face buried in your hair, before you decided to say something that had been bugging you all day.

"Hey, Billie?"

"Hm?"

"You know how you told me not to keep secrets from you?" you asked, twiddling your thumbs nervously.

"Uh-huh," she replied simply, still intoxicated by the scent of your hair, "Where is this going, babygirl?"

"Can we try neck kisses?" you blurted, embarrassed by your own desires, "I mean, of course, only if you want to, it's fine if you don't, I just wanted to tell you so that I could get it off my chest-"

"Shush, baby," she cut you off with a finger to your lips, "Of course I'm willing. And I sure as hell want to, but are you sure you're comfortable with this?"

You nodded excitedly, too nervous to string together a coherent sentence. Billie then leaned in and placed a kiss on your jawline, trailing down to your neck. The sensation tickled, but didn't make you laugh like usual. It felt amazing, just like how you imagined.

Her kisses continued, still very gentle, and her arms snaked around your waist, keeping you steady. Loving every minute of it, you tilted your head to give her better access.

After a while, she pulled away and smiled, "Did you like it?" but you were still dazed from the feather-light sensations, and could only nod.

Leaning back into her, you waited for your tongue to unfreeze before you replied, "That was better than I imagined, Billie."

"What do you mean, imagined?" she chuckled, pulling your hair back gently and placing a kiss on your nape, "Have you been watching things, Y/N? Things I might need to know about?"

"No, stupid," rolling your eyes, you took her hand and intertwined your fingers, "I was reading romances, and I couldn't help but think I've never really experienced those things."

"What things?" the older woman breathed onto your sensitive neck, giving you the shivers.

"You know, neck kisses and other displays of affection like that, you are my first girlfriend, Billie," you said, pulling away to lay your head on her lap, "I had a bunch of people I flirted with, but I wasn't really allowed a serious relationship until I finished studying. Most kids my age were making out with each other and having a new boyfriend or girlfriend every week."

Fondling your hair, Billie was thoughtful before replying, "Well, I have to thank your parents. If they hadn't given you that rule, we wouldn't be together now."

"You have to thank me, Howard," you scoffed, "There were some people confessing to me and I had the choice to keep a secret relationship like everyone else, but I was too obedient for that."

"Well, then, thank you for being such a good girl," she chuckled, rubbing soft circles on your ribs, "Now, what do you say we continue cuddling in the bedroom?"

Taken by surprise, you sat up suddenly and asked, "Fuck, I forgot! Have you eaten dinner already, Billie?"

"Nope," she shook her head, popping the 'p', "But I am pretty sure we have some leftovers. I'll take a shower then eat."

Crinkling your nose at her, you joked, "Ooh, I cuddled you and you were dirty," making her narrow her eyes playfully. "Then take a shower after me. I'm pretty sure you just lay in bed all day today."

"Can't lie, that is true," you laughed, pulling a pillow to your body. Billie chuckled lightly and stood up, kissing you on the forehead again before making her way to the bathroom.

When you heard the water running in the shower, you got up and started heating the rest of the pizza you had ordered that day, setting it on a plate nearby. Waiting for your girlfriend, you started humming a tune and dancing absentmindedly, not minding anything else.

"Having fun, eh?" Billie's voice came from behind you, where she was leaning against the countertop, eating a slice of pizza, "Guess I shouldn't have disturbed you."

"What the actual fuck, Howard."

"Don't give me that look, babygirl," she retorted, mouth full, "Now go take a shower and help me finish this food."

Rolling your eyes, you headed to the bathroom, calling behind you, "This isn't over, Billie Dean!"

"Wasn't counting on it, baby!"

★★★

As you patted your hair dry on the way to the kitchen, you suddenly glimpsed Billie sitting on the countertop, trying to balance the fork on her index finger. With great grown up wit, you decided it would be funny to sneak up and surprise her.

Quietly creeping behind her, you placed both hands on her waist and screeched, "SNAPE SNAPE SEVERUS SNAPE DUMBLEDORE" which made the older woman jump and drop her fork on the floor, clutching her chest.

"Holy fuck, Y/N, what was that for?!" she yelled, breathing heavily, with a smack to your arm, "I didn't do anything to you!"

By then, you were doubled over, wheezing and coughing from hysterical laughter, "Sorry, sorry, Billie, please don't be mad! You looked so adorable playing with that fork, I just couldn't resist!"

With an indignant huff, she smacked you once more before sitting back down on the counter, "Be grateful I love you, otherwise you'd be dead."

"Of course I'm grateful," you replied, nuzzling against her neck apologetically, "Now will you let me make it up to you?"

"Let's see if you can meet my standards," she smirked, tilting her head to give you better access.

Planting a line of soft kisses across her jaw, you said, "Oh, I'm pretty sure I can."

"Let me be the judge of that."

★★★

After a long time spent showing Billie exactly how much you loved her, she decided that it was satisfactory and the two of you now lay cuddling on the couch, watching 'The Devil Wears Prada' in comfortable silence.

"Hey, baby?" Billie spoke suddenly.

"Yeah?"

"Please don't be ashamed if you want to try anything or do anything, no matter how weird it is," she said, placing a soft kiss on your cheek, "I'm willing to give you what you want."

"Thank you, Billie," you replied, as you leaned in to kiss her on the lips, "Thank you for being you."


	10. origami (l. winters)

"I'm telling you, Lana, you're doing fine, just tuck your fingers in gently and then try to pry it open, then flatten it out."

"Fuck, no, I can't, Y/N," the brunette beside you whined, hands fumbling with the small piece of paper, which was supposed to be a crane, but had ended up as a little red shapeless figure, "How do you do that?"

"Practice, Lana," you chuckled, smoothing out the creases in your red crane, "I wasn't this good when I started."

Leaning her head on the couch behind you, she sighed frustratedly, "Why did I sign up for this?"

"You saw me folding some flowers and asked me to teach you how to make it?" nonchalantly placing your finished crane next to some purple lilies you had made, you took a new sheet of paper from the pile and gave it to your girlfriend, "Now let's try again, Winters. Fold them diagonally both ways."

"Okay, okay," she mumbled, successfully following the first steps, "Then I fold them down into a diamond, right?"

Nodding your head, you started to make another figure along with her, "Now, you fold the sides of the diamond to the center like that, then unfold. Make sure that you do both sides, and then fold the top down on it."

"Like that?" the older woman asked, showing you her paper.

"Yup," you answered, smiling, "Then the hard part, you pull the topmost layer up and then flatten it out into a diamond."

With her tongue poking out the corner of her mouth, you watched Lana concentrating very very hard on trying not to tear the wings off the poor bird. The moment she was able to finally flatten it out, even if it was slightly messy, you grinned and gave each other a high five.

"Now do the other side and we can move on to the next step," you said, making your girlfriend pout but go back to her work.

Folding it down, she raised her arms in triumph, "Fuck, yes! Now what's next?"

"You fold these over, then fold that to the center," you instructed, folding it as you spoke, "Do it first and then we can move on."

You watched her amusedly as she did it with laser focus, still kinda messy but nonetheless correct, "Then you pull these up here, then bend this and fold those. Then you're done."

"Wow, did I just, like, I don't know, finish an origami figure?" she asked you, staring in disbelief at her red, slightly injured crane.

"Yes, you did, love, congratulations," with a kiss to her head, you took her finished work and placed it next to yours, "Now let me finish these flowers, so we can hang them up."

"What are the flowers for, though?" she inquired, leaning her head on your shoulder, "And how are you going to hang them up?"

Folding a blue lily, you took the fairy lights that was sitting on the coffee table and started to poke the small bulbs through the flowers, "With these lights, duh."

"Can I help?" unraveling the coiled lights, she took the liberty of securing the ones you had attached with tape, "Where are you going to hang this?"

"On our bedframe, I'm sick of tripping over things at night," you giggled, continuing to string the flowers, "Plus it'll make our room look more romantic."

You could hear Lana scoff from beside you, "Why would we need our room to look romantic?"

Attaching the last flower, you put down the fairy lights and looked over at your girlfriend, still securing the lilies, "Well, Lana Banana, I always wanted some pretty lights in my room. When I was younger, I shared a room with siblings so I couldn't personalize my space. So now, that we're stuck here at home, I decided to make this, it's a now-or-never thing."

"Huh," she sounded thoughtful, "Well, it looks great, do you want me to attach it to the bed or do you want to do it?"

"I'll do it, love," you said, kissing her cheek lightly, "but I could use some help."

The two of you worked in comfortable silence, wrapping the long string of lights over the bedframe and when you had finished, you stepped back and allowed Lana to turn it on, illuminating the room in soft, variously colored light.

"It's so pretty," you said, staring at your handiwork.

"It is, but you're still prettier," she replied with a soft kiss on your head.

"Don't be cheesy, Winters."

"You love me."

"Of course I do."


	11. chore day (a. mayfair - richards)

"Ally? Can you help me, please?" you called, struggling to keep your balance underneath the large pile of bedcovers you were holding.

"Honey? What are you doing?" opening the door to your bedroom, she took half the pile from your hands and placed it on the dresser, "Is it that day already?"

"Yup, now help me remove the bedsheets."

Switching on your speaker, you started playing some of your favorite music and went over to your wife, who was tugging off the sheets from your bed, folding it neatly and piling it on the floor.

"So, what were you doing before I called you?" you asked Ally, folding the pillowcases you had just stripped off, "You don't really seem to enjoy this."

Rolling her eyes, she took the disinfecting spray and started spritzing the mattress and pillows, "I was reading a book in the living room, and it's not that I don't enjoy doing chores with you, I'm just lazy."

"Of course you are, now hand me the bedsheet," you replied, lifting up one corner of the mattress and resting it on your leg.

"Why do you enjoy housework so much?" slipping the bedsheet on one corner of the bed, Ally tugged on it until it was stretched out across the mattress, "I can't drag you out of bed on any other day, and yet on chore day, you're literally just 'we need to do this whether you like it or not'."

With a dramatic roll of your eyes, you replied, "Because, Allyson, we need to do this, whether you like it or not. Now can you arrange the pillows while I load the sheets in the washing machine?"

"Not like I have a choice, do I?"

"No, you don't," you answered, sashaying out of the room with a dramatic hair flip, "You married me, after all."

"I never said I regretted it!" she called out to your retreating figure, making you laugh softly.

Whistling to the tune that was playing in your bedroom, you loaded in the bedcovers and the detergent, making sure it was safely closed, when you felt arms around your waist, "I finished the bedsheets, and I mopped the floor in the room."

"Good job, love," you replied, kissing her lightly on the forehead, "Now, I'm going to go shower so we can fix the clean clothes later."

"And you're going to make me shower too, aren't you?" pouting, she looked at you with her gorgeous brown eyes, "Don't use your puppy eyes on me, Allyson. Not going to work. You're going to take a shower and help me with the clothes, so we can finish early."

With a roll of her eyes, she gave you one last kiss, whining, "Fine. But hurry up, I'm hungry already."

"Aren't you always, though," you answered, walking to the bathroom.

"Yeah, I am, but still."

"Of course."

★★★

Drying your damp hair, you pulled on some clean clothes and went to tell your wife to shower, only to find her sitting on the couch playing Piano Tiles.

"Hey, Ally, bathroom's free," you said, leaning against the back of the sofa, but getting no response, you tried again, "Ally? Are you there?"

"Shhhh," she hissed, "Almost done."

"I'm going to fucking call your phone if you don't go shower now," you retorted, planting your hands on your waist, not that she was looking anyway. 

"Crap," Ally swore as her finger slipped and missed a single tile, "Okay, okay, gonna go now."

As she was leaving to shower, you called out, "Love you, Ally!"

"I know!"

★★★

"Okay, I'm done, what do I do now?" the older woman asked, as you were folding a white shirt on your clean bed.

"Fold, duh," you gestured to the laundry basket filled with clothes, "Sit here with me."

Prior to dating you, Ally had always just hung up all her clothes and threw the other articles in a drawer carelessly, but when she invited you to stay the night for the first time, you had seen her storage and immediately started folding the ones in the drawers neatly.

On her part, she had felt very embarrassed, so she asked you to teach her how you stored your clothes, and your first sleepover had been spent folding shirts and underwear. It had been one of the many reasons she had started falling in love with you, your shamelessness in correcting what you knew was wrong.

The two of you stayed in comfortable silence, listening to the music playing, as you piled up the clothes neatly and she stored them in the drawers.

"Yes! Finally!" you exclaimed after folding the last piece of clothing, "Now I can relax for another week."

"Now can we eat?" Ally asked, lying on top of you, head on your chest, "I'm still hungry."

"Okay, okay, can you pull me up?" with a groan, you forced yourself out of the comfortable position you were in, allowing yourself to be pulled into her arms, where both of you stayed for a while.

As if trying to end the soft moment, she mumbled, "I think there's still some noodles in the fridge," against your neck, which made you roll your eyes and drag her by the wrist to the kitchen.

You plopped yourself down on the chair in front of the counter, as your wife started microwaving the leftovers from last night's dinner, "So, do you feel like playing cards with me tonight?"

"Why would I do that, you literally beat me every single time," she complained, setting two plates on the countertop, "Can't we just play Monopoly or something?"

"Nope, you got to pick the game last week, it's my turn, Ally," you grinned at the brunette, who was scooping noodles and putting them on the plates.

It had become an informal routine for the two of you to play a game every chore day, which was almost always a Saturday. Movie nights were on Fridays, when you would catch up on the things you hadn't been able to watch during the week.

"Fine," she groaned, sitting next to you and stuffing a forkful of food into her mouth, "I just suck at card games."

"I suck at Monopoly, we're even."

"Not for long, get ready to get your ass whooped in Uno tonight!"

"Best of 5 games?"

"You're on."


	12. game night

"Flip a coin or rock, paper, scissors?"

"Rock, paper, scissors, best of 3."

"You're on, Howard," turning your body to face the blonde beside you on your bedroom floor, the two of you started playing to decide who got to pick the game.

Normally, on a Friday night like this, you would be cuddling or watching a movie with your girlfriends, but they had called ahead and let you know they would be working a little later than usual. So, as a last resort, you had called up your best friend to keep you company.

"I win, we're playing Mario Kart," you whooped, raising your arms above your head in triumph, "Best of 12 races, 150cc, then the winner can pick the next game."

With a huff, Billie got up and turned on the console, loading the game on the TV. Tossing you your controller, she plopped down next to you and the two of you selected your characters, and designed your vehicles, ready to go all in to win.

The first race went by fairly quickly. Both of you were seasoned players and knew the shortcuts and stuff, and you were leading, but at the last moment, you got hit by the heartless blue shell and came in second to her first.

"Fuck you," you muttered, cracking your knuckles, "I'm beating you this time."

"Try me, bitch," your best friend retorted, honking her horn aggressively, making your avatar jump.

The second race was slightly more tense, as both of you alternately switched ranks, in first and second. You managed to beat her by a hairbreadth, bumping her off your tail with the banana peels you were holding.

"Shit," you heard the older woman curse as her character slipped, but still managed to recover, "C'mon, c'mon, just a little more."

Pumping your fist triumphantly, you started dancing, "Yes, I did it, I did it, I did it, oh yeah!" which earned you an eye roll from Billie.

The third race was slightly more eventful. Billie purposefully hung around at the back and hit you with a blue shell, and then clawed her way to the top with her skills, managing to overtake you.

More profanities and banter ensued, as per usual.

Nothing interesting happened in the next race, except you did manage to edge her off the track, delaying her for about 10 seconds. She nearly beat you, but the time she lost wasn't easy to make up for without using dirty tricks or cheating.

She did get you back in the next round, holding three green shells, she repeatedly bumped into you, incapacitating you for about 15 seconds. You lost your rank and fell to 4th for a while, but with some elbowing directed to the CPU's, you managed to make it to at least second, which was close enough.

Like every other player, you had your favorite and least favorite battlefields, and being in your favorite track, you managed to beat her, making your score 3 out of 6 rounds you had played so far.

Being tied up, neither of you could afford to lose any round, and that much was evident in the way Billie's jaw was clenched and your eyebrows furrowed. She managed to beat you twice in a row, making the score 5 to 3, and you were not willing to concede.

Fate favored you with one win, just because Billie despised that certain racecourse, and you happened to be very good at it. She accidentally drove herself off the edge of the track while drifting, earning you some time to put some distance between you.

9 out of 12 races had finished, and neither was backing down. She still led by one point, and you wanted to wipe the smug look off her face. Making sure to run into every single power up, you tried, albeit unsuccessfully, to drag her ranking down, but you came in second anyway.

With your pride on the line, you became a lot more aggressive in your playing, not caring if you had to elbow everyone to get to the top.

"Shit, shit, shit," you heard Billie swearing a lot more than usual as you continued to keep your guard up and go on a winning streak, scraping 2 wins in a row.

It came down to the last race. The two of you careened down the track, tearing across corners and bumping into each other, the tension was high, and both of you had no intention of losing.

"Guess I came at the right time, then."

★★★

"Guess I came at the right time, then," a voice came from the doorway. You didn't even have to look up to know who it was. "Hey, Delia, how was your day?"

"Who's winning?" she asked, ignoring your question.

"I'm leading by a single point, this is the last race, best of 12, do you wanna play later?"

"Maybe later, honey, after I shower. Now beat Howard's ass for me."

"Nice to see you too, Delia," came the snarky comment from the blonde beside you.

The two of you went back to gnashing your teeth, fingers tensing up on the controllers. You had been keeping a steady lead in the first lap so far, but Billie didn't want that to happen. Running through a power up, she threw a red shell at you and managed to pass you by. She managed to evade you and your three banana peels, which was annoying, but with a lot of elbowing, you did get her to fall off again, getting to take the lead.

It being the last lap, it was now or never. You kept an iron grip on your position, using as many speed ups as you could to put a distance between you and Billie. And then it happened.

That cursed blue shell flew past everyone and crashed onto you. Your hard work disappeared, and your best friend took first place, triumphantly victory dancing.

"Wait," she stopped her celebration abruptly, "That means we're tied, right?"

"So who gets to decide the next game?" you asked, looking up at the dancing blonde.

"Honey, look, the kids are playing Mario Kart," Delia's voice came from the doorway, talking to who could only be, "Mina!"

You raced to the doorway and wrapped the freshly showered redhead, careful of her back, in a hug, "Why didn't you tell me you guys were on your way home?"

"Well, after we talked, Mina decided to pick me up and come home. I was not expecting to see Billie Dean Howard, medium to the stars, here, on your bedroom floor, playing video games with you," Cordelia replied, placing a soft kiss on both of your heads, "I'm going to go shower now."

Still very cautious of her back, you pulled Wilhemina to sit on your bed and you grabbed a bunch of other games from your closet and spread it out on the floor, "Since Billie and I tied at Mario Kart, Mina, you pick the game we'll play while waiting for Delia."

"Let's play chess," she chuckled, smoothing her violet nightgown, "You still haven't beaten me."

Setting up the board and pieces, you rolled your eyes, "Yeah, because you're too good at it. Why not against Billie?"

"I'm staying out of this, you two lovebirds have fun," Billie chuckled, "I know Venable's just going to kick my ass."

"Good you know that, Howard," Mina replied, allowing you to make your first move, "Interesting choice."

The game wasn't as adrenaline-filled as your session with Billie, but you tried to win nonetheless. You were logical and strategic, but still light-hearted, some of the reasons Wilhemina had found herself drawn to you.

The two of you had always played chess as your bonding, because you grew up with older sibling figures who liked brainiac games, and she just enjoyed planning. You were almost evenly matched, but Mina's extra years of practice showed when the game got tight. Which was exactly what was happening now. You were both down many pieces, including both of your queens.

"Crap, I was so close," you muttered as the redhead took the life of the pawn you were trying to put at her end of the board, "Check."

Examining your choices, your king was cornered by her rook, and her bishop, so you moved it one space to the left, "I'm going to lose. yet again."

"Practice, sweetheart," she chuckled, "Check again."

You moved your knight in front of the king, but she moved her rook down to the row it was in, "Check."

"I think I'm fighting a losing battle," you sighed as you moved the king diagonally to escape her rook.

"I think that's checkmate, love," as Mina pointed the possibilities out, you saw her bishop could assault you even if you evaded her rook, "Better luck next time, Y/N."

"Just in time, too," Billie pointed out, gesturing to Cordelia, who was just entering the room.

Looking up at your other girlfriend, you started clearing up your chess set, "So, Delia, what game are we playing?"

"Why am I picking?" she asked, sitting next to Wilhemina on the bed, "Did she beat you again?"

"Yeah, she did," Billie interjected, "And we all got to pick a game already. Except for me. Because Y/N beat me at rock, paper, scissors."

"Well, you do know what game I like, honey," Delia said sweetly, but all it got out of you was a frustrated groan. "Not that game! I suck at it!"

Your best friend was glancing from person to person confusedly, "I don't get it. What game are we playing?"

"Well, Billie," Mina began, "On one of our first date nights, y/n here picked that game, and in fairness, she is pretty good at it. But when Delia finally caught on to the flow of the game, she started beating all of us, hence why y/n hates it so much. So much, she can hardly speak the name without gagging."

"Ooooh," Billie whistled appreciatively, "Can I see the label?"

You showed it to her reluctantly and started setting up, "I really started to hate this once I began my losing streak."

"Can you say the name?" your best friend asked, nudging you playfully. "Well, it's...ugh, I can't even say it without being grossed out.

"It's-"

★★★

"It's Uno," you managed to mumble under your breath, "I hate saying it."

"We know, love," Mina soothed, stroking your hair, "But you did say Delia could pick a game. And she did."

Billie switched on your speaker and started playing some chill music while you started shuffling the cards expertly. Growing up in a large family had given you many, many quirks and odd talents, proficiency in card games was one of them.

Handing out 7 cards equally to each person, you arranged your cards, determined to win. The deck was set on the bed, where Delia and Mina sat facing each other, and you and Billie were on the floor, using the bed as a table.

The top card was a red 3, and as games started with the person to the left of the dealer, Mina put down a red 0, followed by Delia's red reverse card.

When it came to you, you changed the color to blue, making Billie draw cards until she managed to get a blue 4. The game went on until Delia only had 3 cards left, and all of you had like 5.

Mina put down a reverse card, putting the sequence back properly, and Cordelia put down a +2, skipping over Billie.

"Fuck you, Cordy," she mumbled, rearranging her cards, "This is the fifth time you've skipped me."

You put down a reverse card, winking at your best friend, who put down a +2 card, eager to get back at your girlfriend. With a curse directed at the medium, the witch drew two cards from the deck and Mina put down a skip a turn card, which made you look up at her accusingly.

"Sorry, love, I literally don't have any more options," the redhead apologized, pinching your cheek lightly.

A scoff came from the woman beside her, "She deserves it," earning a pointed look from Wilhemina. "And why would she deserve it, may I ask?"

"They're ganging up on me!" Cordelia whined, flopping onto your pillows.

"Only because you beat us every time we play," Mina retorted with a light smack to her thigh, making Billie laugh. "Honestly, I can see why Y/N hates this game so much. Especially if 'the supreme' is this competitive."

"Let's just finish this," you rolled your eyes at the childishness of your friends, "I wanna get it over with."

Billie put down a 5, bringing her cards down to 6. Cordelia, with her 5 cards, put down a color change card, picking yellow. Mina put down a 4, leaving her and you with the least number of cards, both with 3.

You started singing and dancing abruptly, aggressively body rolling as you drew cards because you had none to put down. You eventually did draw a card that was appropriate to use, a +4 color change card, which you put down with an apologetic look to your best friend, who shrugged but still mumbled some curses.

The game progressed slightly more quickly, Cordelia was down to 3 cards and Wilhemina was down to 2. You and Billie were falling slightly behind at 5 and 6 cards, respectively. Delia had just put down her third card, and all of you shared glances as Mina made to put her card on the pile.

"Uno!" the redhead beat all of you to it, "I have a good feeling about this game."

"As long as Delia doesn't win, I'm good," you muttered as you sorted through your ever-expanding deck of cards, putting down one as Cordelia stuck her tongue out at you.

"Oh, don't worry, she won't," Billie smirked, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes as she put down a +4 once again, "I'll make sure of it."

"Fuck you, Howard," drawing her cards, the supreme raised her middle finger up at the cackling blonde beside you. You started laughing, while Mina drew 2 cards, "Now, now, Delia, we don't want a sore loser here."

Wilhemina put down a green card she had drawn, and you put down a +2 card. The game continued until it was back to the way it was before Billie had sabotaged Delia's near victory.

Then it finally happened. Mina put down her second to the last card, and you put down one of yours as well.

"Hey, Mina," Billie asked, cheekily grinning, "what color is your card?"

"Blue," Mina smiled back despite Cordelia's protests, "Thanks in advance, Howard."

"Nooooooo," Delia whined, as Billie put down her +4 color change card and declared it blue, "You guys hate meeeee"

"We don't hate you, Delia," putting down her last card, Mina comforted the childish witch, "We just refuse to let you win."

"But still," with a huff, she pouted, "this isn't fair."

"Oh, but it is, Cordelia," you said, arranging and putting away the cards, "and now Billie gets to pick a game as well, so I'll probably lose again."

"What's the game, Howard?" wrapped in Wilhemina's arms, Cordelia directed her question to the blonde beside you, which only made her smirk and back into your closet ominously.

"You'll see, Miss Supreme, you'll see."

★★★

"You'll see, Miss Supreme, you'll see."

As Billie started looking for a game, you giggled and sat in between your two lovers.

"Why did you guys decide to come home early?" you asked while Delia wrapped her arms around your waist and Mina started kissing your head, "I mean, not that I'm complaining, but it is kinda out of the ordinary for you guys to like, you know, drop everything and start playing with me. I understand that your jobs are really important and you don't necessarily have to put things on hold for me."

Delia started tracing circles on your ribs soothingly, "Well, we wanted to, honey. More importantly, Venable wanted to. Right after we hung up, she called me and told me she was on her way. We miss you a lot when we're at work, love."

"I personally just didn't want to see the house burned down," Wilhemina scoffed, which made Cordelia smack her arm, "What? I'm just saying, leaving Billie Dean unsupervised is very dangerous."

"Nice to know your opinion of me hasn't changed, Venny," with a laugh, Billie came out of the closet holding something behind her back, "And you lovebirds are gonna get your asses whooped, behold, your downfall!"

Your best friend's antics never failed to amuse you, and this stupid, entertainingly stupid scenario was so comical, you started laughing hysterically, much to the amusement of everyone else in the room. Your laughter in itself was unique to everyone who heard it, with its hisses and gasps that made you sound like a dolphin. Who could blame you though, Billie had just started dancing and posing like one of the models on 'Deal Or No Deal'.

Cordelia took the game from a wheezing Billie, "Overcooked? Are you serious?" making her force her laughter to a stop, with much difficulty, one might add, and grin ominously at the supreme.

"Don't underestimate my powers, Miss Goode," smiling devilishly, Billie loaded the game as she handed out controllers, "You clearly haven't played this yet."

Wilhemina snorted, "It doesn't sound so promising," which earned a glare from you amid the giggles that were trying to escape, "Don't give me that look, y/n, I didn't say I wasn't willing to try."

"Well, this game is awesome," you said, laughter finally curbed, "and I'm calling the teams."

"You're not going to leave me with Venny, are you?" Billie asked from the floor, "I mean, I love that purple lady and all, but still."

Connecting the controllers, you started fixing the teams, "We doing rock, paper, scissors to be fair. as much as I would love to team up with Howard and kick your asses, the teams are going to be one pro with one beginner."

And that was how Billie ended up with Mina and you with Delia. Botj of them had the gift of catching on quickly, and after a few test runs, you had Cordelia managing the stoves while you ran back and forth to grab some ingredients.

Billie and Mina weren't faring all that well. They had been arguing about which dishes were supposed to be served, as if it didn't say at the top of the screen. Normally, you were the one to run for ingredients and assembling, but Mina had taken Billie's job of manning the stove, and now they were both struggling.

"Howard, I swear, this one's not supposed to have tomatoes yet!" the redhead groaned frustratedly, "Why do you keep making full sandwiches when we need one without vegetables?"

"I'm not usually the runner, Venable," Billie grumbled as her character frantically ran around the kitchen, "And clearly, I'm not so good at this particular job."

Both you and Cordelia were biting the insides of your cheeks to keep from laughing at the two who were still arguing. Chopping a tomato and plating it, you served yet another sandwich, making sure to wash the dishes. This was going well, for your side at least.

"Why don't you switch then?" you suggested, still grinning, "I mean, I think Mina would be a good runner, she hates imperfections so much."

As the level ended, the two glanced at each other, "Fine," "Okay."

The next level was a lot more eventful. Billie was back on her preferred job, and Mina proved to be an awesome runner, so you gritted your teeth and started dashing around the kitchen. Delia was still calm, which was kind of unlike her, but you weren't complaining. She kept up a steady production of burger patties that you assembled and served.

You still lost this one round, though. That was painful to admit.

"Best of three, Y/N?" Billie smirked, high-fiving Mina.

Jaw clenched, you glanced over at Delia, who nodded, "Fine. But be prepared to lose."

The first round took place on the pirate ship level, with the shifting countertops and service areas. It was a struggle to keep a cool head, but you managed it pretty well, beating the other team by one point.

The next round took place on the ice, with the river in between the service and cooking area. You might have won it, had you not fallen into the water with a completed dish. Billie and Mina were getting competitive, but you were not about to let them win.

They won the next game, in the pitch black darkness only lit by a flashlight near your character. It was a close fight, but you accidentally handed the wrong ingredients to Cordelia and made the kitchen burn.

You scraped two wins in a row after much frustration in the outer space and lava levels. It was difficult to serve dishes with the conveyor belts and shifting tables, but somehow, all of you worked out a system and you beat them only when Billie accidentally threw away a completed dish. Which had led to much cursing.

"Fuck you, Howard, you had one job," Mina seethed, waves of frustration rolling off her.

"I wasn't about to let the kitchen burn, now, was I?"

"Well, you could have picked up the food before switching off the stove."

"There was no counterspace left, Venable," Billie snapped back, "Let's just finish this."

Grinning mischievously, you winked at Cordelia, who nodded slightly, "Do or die round, ladies, best of luck," you said as you cracked your knuckles.

This round took place in the first setting, the plain cafe, with not many hindrances. It was a very close fight, everyone yelling at everyone else to keep moving. Just to piss everyone off, you pressed a certain button on the controller, making your character release a string of unintelligible words which were supposed to be curses.

"Cuss me out like a man, L/N," Billie muttered, still focused on the game, "That button is for wimps."

"I'll cuss you out if we lose, Howard," Wilhemina retorted.

Cordelia giggled as you served a dish just before the timer ran out, "Well, I'm excited to see it happen. We won."

Stretching your arms over your head, you yawned, "I'm honestly surprised Mina had it in her to be **that** competitive."

"There's a lot of things about me I choose not to acknowledge," the redhead said, yawning as well, "Like my tolerance of Howard here."

"You love me, Venable," Billie smirked, leaning her head against the bed, eyelids drooping, "And even if you don't, your girlfriend still does."

Laying her head on your lap, Cordelia brushed stray hairs away from your face, "Which girlfriend, Howard? You're forgetting she has two."

"Y/N's the only one who doesn't bully me," she mumbled, crawling to the mattress you had set up on the floor for her, "Y'all are just mean."

You got up to turn off the console, and glancing over at your friend, you saw her fast asleep, breathing evenly, "You know, Mina, she's kinda right. You do seem to enjoy bullying her. Same for you, Delia."

"It's not my fault she threw away the dish," Wilhemina mumbled as you crawled into the space between them, "And I don't bully her."

Sleepily, Cordelia wrapped her arms around you, "You kinda do, love. I've been trying hard not to, but it's something about her being so annoying that makes me want to tease her back."

"Can you try to be a little nicer?" you asked as your eyes started to shut, "Just a little?"

Mina chuckled, switching off the lights, "No promises, love. Now go to sleep, you're exhausted."

"I love you guys. Goodnight."

"Love you too, honey."


	13. lethargic (s. paulson)

Turning the key in the lock, Sarah entered your shared apartment, "Y/N? I'm back, are you there?"

As a person, you were normally very bubbly and hyper, really happy, but today, your girlfriend had noticed something was up. Your replies to texts weren't really different, but the call you had shared at lunch break gave your front away.

There was a quality in your voice that had seemed tired, and just different. It had been bugging Sarah all day, so she was grateful that she finally got to go home and investigate. The sight she found, although not what she was expecting, didn't sadden her any less.

DEAN's 'instagram' was playing, very loudly, one might add, while you were lying on your bed, staring vacantly at the ceiling. Not even moving, not doing anything, which was uncharacteristic of you.

"Y/N? Are you ok?" Sarah asked, moving closer towards the bed.

You mustered a weak smile, "Hi, Sarah, how was your day?"

"A lot better now that I'm with you," she replied as she sat on the floor next to the bed. Brushing your hair away from your face, she kissed your cheek lightly, "How are you feeling? You seemed down when we talked."

With a sigh, you stayed quiet for a while, as the background music moved on to the next song, 'Wish' by Urban Zakapa, "Sad music always makes me feel better."

"Yeah, right," the older woman scoffed, resting her hand on yours, "You're evading the question again, Y/N."

"I can't explain it, Sarah," you admitted, "How do you explain feeling happy when you start your day and you're able to function for a while and all of a sudden you're completely unmotivated and really empty? I'm just really lethargic right now."

There was silence, the thoughtful kind, that lasted until the first chorus of the next song on your playlist, 'Hurt Road' by Day6. That was when your girlfriend decided to speak up, "I think everyone goes through that sometimes. And we all have our own ways of coping with having to mourn the death of a random person."

"I can't believe you remembered that conversation," you chuckled, intertwining your fingers, "That was one of those random things I found online."

"I never forget anything interesting, love," Sarah replied, "Now, do you need help feeling better?"

The song changed again, 'Flower' by Code Kunst, and the smile on your face grew slightly, "Yes, please."

"Let me change first," letting go of your hand, she stood, walking to your shared closet and taking some clothes, "I'm going to make us some popcorn, be right back."

She knew exactly what you wanted, and exactly what you needed. Everyone had their own comforts in sadness, yours just happened to be cuddles with a nice movie, warm blankets in a cold room, and popcorn as a snack.

You stayed still there, allowing the music and the aroma of popcorn from the kitchen to wash over you. Avril Lavigne's 'I'm With You' started playing, and you closed your eyes, focusing on the song.

"What movie are you feeling today, love?" Sarah's voice dragged you back to reality, away from the empty feelings, "I'm guessing My Little Pony."

"Nope," you said, popping the 'p', "We're watching Ocean's 8 again."

"Aw, come on," placing the bowl of popcorn on the bed, she turned on her laptop and started to browse, "Why do you like it so much?"

You shrugged and moved to hug her, humming along to 'Somewhere Only We Know' by Keane, "I don't know. I just do."

Something about this woman grounded you, she kept you from drowning in the thoughts that plagued you constantly. It was like she understood how much you valued the comfort other people brought when they showed that they cared. There were days when all she had to do was stay with you in the same room and tell you about her day, and you would feel better instantly.

The two of you stayed there until she found the film on Netflix, "There, now turn off your music so we can watch already."

You pulled yourself out of the comfort of your bed, switched off your music, and connected the speaker to the laptop. When you turned back, you saw your girlfriend opening her arms for a hug, which you happily gave, snuggling into her embrace.

Your favorite movie was playing, and you were wrapped in your girlfriend's love, so gradually the emptiness dissipated and made way for contentment. When the last remnants of the negative emotions disappeared, you turned and placed a kiss on your lover's lips.

"Feeling better?"

"Yup, thanks a lot."

"Anything for you, love."


	14. bad habits (c. goode)

・ everyone had their share of bad habits.

・ ever since childhood, you had always cracked your knuckles, until it developed into an involuntary habit.

・ in addition to that, you found it very hard to sit still, movement was absolutely necessary to maintain your sanity.

・ cordelia had been drawn to you the moment you stepped into the school, and that didn't change at all, she still was enamored by you.

・ she never told you off for fidgeting, only when it was a disturbance to others did she ask you, very nicely, to try playing with something less audible.

・ you were very grateful that after years of trying to suppress all your energy, nobody was telling you to 'keep still'.

・ delia had always been attentive to your body language, from the way you would play with the rings on your fingers, to the way your leg would bounce up and down, and to the way you bit the inside of your cheek.

・ when you seemed more energetic than usual, she would pass you an origami book and papers, knowing you well enough to know that making something helped focus your energy.

・ you loved her dearly, and were very grateful for everything she had done for you, so you tried to pay attention to the non verbal signals she was sending out.

・ soon you noticed that she would routinely skip meals to keep working in her office.

・ at first when you questioned her about it, she denied it and said she wasn't hungry.

・ you then tried to convince her to eat with you and the girls, she shut down your efforts yet again, snapping that she was busy and needed to work.

・ that was the first night after you started dating that you slept in your own room.

・ the next day, she passed you the origami book again, with an apology, which you accepted happily.

・ you then tried a different approach, slipping a lunch box into her office everyday, with a small origami figure and note.

・ cordelia noticed your efforts and made sure to eat the food you prepared, thanking you when she kissed you good night.

・ wanting to repay you, she started looking for new ways to focus your attention on something productive.

・ soon, you were knitting and practicing typography, implementing those in the small tokens you left in delia's lunch box.

・ when you noticed her working late, you would sneak into her office and give her a hug before asking her to sleep with you.

・ every time she refused, you would make sure she slept in, completing the 8 hours she needed.

・ on those days, she'd wake up to hot coffee on the nightstand, and a small note telling her how much you loved her.

・ she would look for you and kiss your forehead after getting ready, showing you her gratitude.

・ sometimes she'd ask you about some cuts on your hands, and you would deflect, saying it was an accident.

・ (which wasn't entirely a lie, because you had no idea where they came from.)

・ she would catch you peeling the scabs off the cuts, and the two of you would spend time in her office treating them.

・ you both knew better than to directly tell each other off for things, because inside, there was that knowledge that it was wrong and all you needed was someone to take care of you.

・ the two of you would go out for picnics every once in a while, and you would talk about everything.

・ she'd tell you about a new craft book she had found, suggesting that you try it.

・ you would ask her what she thought of your cooking, and if she liked the gifts you'd leave.

・ she'd ask how your wounds were healing, or if you felt them itching again.

・ you would then show her your band-aids, allowing her to touch them with her ever-so-gentle caresses that said more than words ever could.

・ after some silence, you'd ask her how she slept, and she'd always answer the same, 'better when i'm with you,' and you'd both grin at her cheesiness.

・ and in that moment, both of you knew that everyone did have their share of bad habits, but you had finally found your cure.


	15. innocent (s. mckenna)

It was kind of a lonely night. You had checked into the Hotel Cortez upon arriving in Los Angeles, and you were bored out of your mind. The room was fine, but one could only lay in bed for how long before wanting to do something else.

Exploring the hotel, you decided to stay at the bar for a while, the most interesting place you had seen so far. It was nearly empty, except for the bartender, and a woman seated at the other end of the bar, wearing a leopard print coat over a spaghetti strap dress.

"What can I get for you?" the bartender asked, snapping you out of your observation.

"I'll have a root beer, please."

You gazed over the area, taking in the quiet music playing, and the lights illuminating the space, when someone spoke to you.

"Hey, beautiful, is this seat taken?" a man asked, gesturing to the seat next to you. As you shook your head, he sat down and you took in his appearance. sandy blonde hair, a scar running across his face, he seemed like a bad boy, someone to be cautious with.

He wasn't oblivious to your staring, and smirking, he turned to look at you, "Do you like what you see?"

"One root beer," the bartender saved you from embarrassment, sliding your drink over, which you sipped gratefully.

"Can I get a brandy?" the man asked, "Thanks."

Now very nervous, you twisted the straw with your fingers, "What's your name, beautiful?"

"I-I don't think I'm supposed to say," you stuttered, avoiding eye contact, "You know, talking to strangers and all."

Scoffing, the man took a sip of his drink, "You can't possibly tell me you're that innocent."

"Why would being innocent be so bad?" you replied, looking everywhere but at him. The woman sitting at the other end of the bar caught your eye but looked away, taking a drag from her cigarette.

"C'mon, babygirl, stop pretending, you know you want to," he pressed on. leaning near your ear, he whispered, "I can make you feel good."

You pulled away, desperate to be anywhere but near him, "Please leave me alone, sir."

"Sir, I like that," he chuckled, "but I'd like 'daddy' more."

He placed a hand on your thigh. "Sir, please stop."

Ignoring your protests, he moved closer and closer, until a hand tapped his shoulder.

"I think it's time for you to leave," the woman said, knowing how he had been harassing you, "Clearly, you're making her uncomfortable."

"And who exactly are you?" he snapped, "And how would you know what she'd be feeling?"

"If you don't leave, I'm going to have to call security. You really can't tell when someone doesn't want it, do you?"

"You bitch," standing up, he was slightly taller than her, but you were still more intimidated by your hero, "How dare you talk to me like that?"

Just as he was moving to hit her, she punched him in the face, sending him flying, "I told you, you should leave."

"You're going to pay for that," clutching his bleeding nose, he walked away, scowling, "You'll regret it."

"Try me, asshole," she retorted, flipping him off, "Your nose won't be the only thing bleeding when I'm through with you."

Now turning her attention to you, she looked over you, "Did he hurt you? Are you okay?"

"I'm better now, thanks so much," you replied, taking a sip of your drink, "You totally saved me."

"My pleasure," holding out a hand to you, she smiled, "The name's Sally. Can I sit here with you? You seemed pretty bored when you came in."

"Y/N," you smiled back, shaking her hand, "As long as you won't harass me, you can sit near me all you want."

She plopped down next to you and lit a cigarette, "I hate jerks like that, thinking that a girl wants to sleep with them, just because they're pretty and considerate enough to let them sit nearby."

"You seem like you have a lot of experience in that department, Sally," giggling, you took a sip of your slightly warm root beer, "I didn't really get to go out much when I was younger, so I had no idea that there were people like that. I thought that only happened in books or movies."

After a long drag, she stared at you, eyebrows furrowed, "Are you kidding me? A girl as pretty as you? Has never experienced someone flirting with her?"

"Why are you so surprised?"

"I just thought you'd be the type who's had a lot of boyfriends," she shrugged, "Guess you can't judge a book by its cover."

"You really can't," with a small laugh, you chewed on an ice cube before replying, "Bold of you to assume I wouldn't prefer a girlfriend."

"Wait, are you gay?" the obvious confusion on her face was priceless, "Like, fully into women gay?"

"I'm bi," you chuckled, "Why are you so surprised?"

"I thought I wouldn't be able to ask you out," she answered, very matter-of-factly, taking a drag from her cigarette, "At least now I have a slight chance."

"Wait, what?!"

"Are you really oblivious or do you just want me to compliment you again?"

"No, no, no, I was just wondering if you really meant it, you know, about asking me out and stuff. And how you said I was pretty."

"I mean, if you weren't gay or at least bi, then I would have probably been disappointed," she shrugged, "And of course I think you're pretty. Do you think I'd notice him harassing you if my eyes hadn't been stuck on you the whole night?"

You were quiet for a while, looking into her brown eyes, "Nobody's ever asked me out before. Or been interested in me in that way, for that matter."

"Well, then they're missing out. You are hands down the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

"Aw, thanks a lot," your cheeks flushed at the compliment, "But I don't really think there's much they're missing out on. I'm not the most interesting person out there."

"Then it's high time we disproved that. I'd like to get to know you better and not just flirt with you because you're beautiful. So would you give me the honor of buying you dinner tomorrow night if you're free?"

"I'd be glad to."

"You know, you're the first girl I've asked out."

"Really? With the way you were talking, I thought you'd be the type with a lot of experience."

"Guess you can't judge a book by it's cover."

"You really can't."


	16. relapse (w. venable)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw // self harm

Scratching your arms and thighs fiercely, the red marks were getting more and more prominent as you tried to resist the temptation to cut yourself. It had been months since your moods got this bad.

You were well aware that the blade was in the stationery drawer, but you were also aware of your girlfriend's hatred of the act. Wilhemina had made you swear up and down never to harm yourself after she discovered your past with it, and so far, you had done a pretty good job keeping that promise.

The urge to draw blood was getting stronger, and she wasn't due to be home for a while. As much as you hated to do it, you got up and took the silver blade from the drawer and entered the bathroom, stripping off your shirt and hoodie. 

As you traced your fingers over the scars on your shoulders, you dragged the blade across your skin, allowing the blood to stream down your body. Normally, you'd contain the damage to an easily concealed area, but the blood you were drawing wasn't enough.

"Y/N? Where are you?" Mina called, apparently home from work early, "Are you hungry?"

Slashing roughly on your forearms, you realized the extent of everything you had been doing, "Shit."

"I'm in the bathroom, I'll be there in a sec," you called, voice miraculously steady. With your quick decision making and instincts, you managed to wrap toilet paper around all the wounds, flush the toilet, and wash your hands in record time.

You threw on your shirt and hoodie, careful not to mess up the tissues, and ran to meet the redhead, who was sitting in the living room.

"Sorry I took so long, Mina," with your head hung, you sat next to your girlfriend, who wrapped her arm around you, which hurt, but you weren't going to show it, "Why didn't you tell me you were coming home early?"

"It was obviously meant to be a surprise," she raised an eyebrow at you, taking your hand in hers, "And I brought you some ramen for dinner."

"Really?" you asked excitedly, "You should have started with that, now that you mention food, I'm starving."

The older woman rolled her eyes at your constant hunger, "Well, aren't you always."

"I am, but can we please eat anyway?"

"Only because you asked nicely," she replied, using her cane to get up from the couch and offering you her hand.

The two of you went to the kitchen and sat down to eat. Despite your hair being tied back, the steam from the hot soup and the heat of your hoodie made you start to sweat, which of course, didn't go unnoticed.

"Take off your hoodie, Y/N," Mina said, "It's hot. And you're eating soup."

You shook your head, wiping a drop of sweat tracing down your cheek, "I'm fine."

"Just take it off already."

Very very reluctantly, you stripped off your protective armor, exposing the blood-stained tissues on your forearms. You hung your head shamefully, not wanting to face the fury of your girlfriend.

"What the fuck, Y/N? I thought you promised never to do this again! Are you really incapable of keeping a single promise?"

"I'm sorry," you mumbled, feeling the tears welling up in your eyes and trickling down your face, "I'm really sorry."

With a sigh, Wilhemina stood up, taking your hand in hers. She led you to your bedroom, "Sit on the bed."

Wiping away your tears, you nodded, not daring to say a word. The older woman took the medical kit from the bathroom and upon coming back, the sight of you broke her heart. She absolutely hated seeing you vulnerable and anything other than happy.

She sat down next to you, taking your left forearm in her hands and wiping it gently with a damp washcloth, "It's going to hurt a little, okay?"

Pouring hydrogen peroxide over your cuts, you bit your lip, resisting the urge to make a sound. She took your right arm and after cleaning it poured the liquid over it as well, only looking up at you when you hissed, the tears streaming down your face.

She dabbed some antiseptic on the wounds and wrapped bandages around your arm securely, "Are those the only ones, or are there some more?"

"There...are some...on my shoulders," you stuttered through your quiet sobs, "I'm really sorry, Mina."

"Lie down, sweet girl," she replied, pulling your blood-stained white shirt off you.

You couldn't stop crying as you felt the gentle movements of the washcloth, then the acid-like burn of the cleaning, then the oh-so delicate but firm way she wrapped the bandages around your shoulders.

"Y/N, love, can you look at me?" Mina asked kindly as she put a clean shirt on you, "Please?"

Lifting your gaze to meet the warm brown eyes you loved so much, you tried to wipe away the hot tears still running down your face, "I'm really really sorry about this, Mina. I-I felt so angry, I just couldn't stop."

"It's okay, love," she soothed, caressing your cheek and brushing your hair away from your face, "I'm sorry I got so mad, I just worry about you. A lot."

"I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise," you sobbed.

"Promises were made to be broken, but you just have to try harder, okay?" wrapping you in a hug, the older woman stroked your back, "I believe in you, sweet girl, and I love you so much. Please don't forget that."

"I'm sorry I ruined dinner," you sniffed, "The soup's probably cold now."

"I could honestly care less. I just need to know you're okay."

"Thank you. For everything. I love you," you said, tears finally stopping.

Placing a tender kiss on your forehead, Mina took your hand in hers and traced her finger over your knuckles, "I love you so much, my sweet girl. I don't say it often enough, but I do. Don't forget it."

"I won't."


	17. mine (b. d. howard)

Putting the final touches on your lipstick, you checked yourself once more in the mirror before heading out of the door.

Billie had been very busy recently, and tonight was one of the rare times she was free, and the two of you were meeting for dinner at a restaurant. You wanted to look good for her so she'd finally give you some attention.

Your phone rang, signaling an incoming call from your girlfriend.

"Hey, Billie," you chirped, "I'm on my way."

"Someone's excited, aren't they?"

With an eye roll, you curtly replied, "Well, this is the first night in how long we can finally have some time together."

"I know, and I can't wait to see you, I just got stuck in some traffic."

"Hurry it up, Howard, you're not allowed to bail on me." you hung up, walking slightly quicker to the meeting place.

Billie frowned at her phone. Of course she understood that you were frustrated, hell, she was frustrated that she hadn't been able to spend time with you for nearly a week.

You, on the other hand, were just scared she'd have to cancel your date again. It irritated you to no end that you couldn't keep your annoyance to yourself and not lash out at your girlfriend, who hadn't really done anything wrong.

Still lost in your thoughts, you sat down at the table you had made reservations for, not even noticing as a waitress made her way over to you.

"May I get your order, ma'am?"

"I'll have a water for now," you replied, still kinda pissed off.

The redhead, or as her nametag read, Rachel, poured water from a pitcher into your glass, observing your behavior.

"Tough day?"

"Can't tear my date away from work," you mumbled, putting your chin on your hand, "And it's seeming she's going to be late today again."

"Oh, so it's a she? What a lucky lady she is to be seeing someone as pretty as you," Rachel commented, with a flirtatious wink, which just made you roll your eyes.

"She's lucky, alright. Lucky I'm not whooping her ass right now."

"Well, I can keep you company until she gets here."

The two of you started making small talk, mostly about what you did for a living, and how you and Billie met.

You were unaware of your girlfriend, who had just arrived. And seeing you talking to a rather attractive waitress sparked something in her.

She strutted over to the table, heels clacking on the floor, and placed a kiss directly on your lips. Which was a very effective tactic to make Rachel highly uncomfortable, and you very confused.

"Sorry I'm late, babygirl, traffic was horrible."

"May I take your orders, ma'am?" the redhead asked awkwardly, shifting from leg to leg.

With a smirk, Billie gave the waitress your orders before taking your hand in hers.

"What the fuck was that, Howard?" you asked, pissed off, "You show up late yet again, then when I'm having a conversation with someone, you go and make them uncomfortable."

"Well, I'm sorry I'm late," she answered huskily, moving next to you, "And can I help it if I don't want anybody else around you?"

"Wh-what is that supposed to mean?"

"You're mine," she whispered, nibbling on your earlobe, "and don't you forget it."

When Rachel came back to bring the orders and found Billie kissing your neck, her cheeks flushed uncontrollably but she still managed to serve the food. Your girlfriend smirked, knowing that her message had been delivered.

"Jealous much, Howard?" you giggled, pulling away from her, "It ook you like a week to finally spend some time with me and now that I talk to another girl you're all affectionate and possessive."

With a huff, the blonde ran a hand through her hair, "Well, your outfit isn't making it easy for me to control myself. I'm really sorry I was late. I left early but the traffic was awful."

"So you like my outfit, huh?" you smiled suggestively at the older woman, "Maybe I should dress up like this more often."

"I wouldn't get any work done, baby. I'd spend all my time making sure nobody came near you," Billie chuckled, putting a spoonful of food in her mouth.

"If that's what it takes to get love from you," you mumbled, mouth full, "then I'm sure as fuck willing."

"Jeez, baby, that's kinda drastic, don't you think?"

"A week without as much cuddles as I'm used to is awful. And if I have to resort to drastic measures to get my own girlfriend to cuddle me, then so be it."

"I've got a week off," she chuckled, wiping off some food from the corner of your mouth, "so we can make up for lost time."

"Really?"

Billie nodded, smiling, "At least you won't have to flirt with anyone else to get over your withdrawals."

"It worked, didn't it?"

"It helped, but it wasn't the main thing," she chuckled.

"Then what was it?"

"I wasn't jealous because you were talking to her. I saw her eye-fucking you. And honestly, in that outfit, I can't say I blame her."

"You can't control what other people look at, Howard. And my eyes are up here."

Pecking a soft kiss to your lips, the blonde just smirked, "Well, I can make sure they won't have anything to look at. You're never leaving the house in something that revealing."

"And why would I obey you?" you rolled your eyes at her possessiveness, "You literally ditched our dates this week."

"Let's face it, babygirl, I'm the only one you want eye-fucking you. And you're mine. Nobody else is allowed to so much as look at you."

"How possessive, Miss Howard."

"Mine."


	18. forever (s. paulson)

"How do I look?" you asked your best friend, who was straightening her suit. Cate looked over and just grinned.

"You look fucking amazing, Y/N, Sarah's a lucky girl."

"Don't be silly, I'm luckier, now zip me up, will you?" you chuckled, turning around.

After months of waiting, the day had finally come that you would be able to marry the love of your life. The two of you had met on set, where you worked as part of the overall production crew.

You say met now, but in reality she had sneezed really loudly while you were adjusting the lights and scared the living fuck out of you. You had then dropped the lamp and cussed her out in three different languages. She had taken you out to dinner as an apology for nearly giving you a heart attack and two years later on the exact same day, she proposed to you.

To say you were nervous was an understatement. Your hands were shaking as Cate steadily zipped up the dress from behind you. Taking a deep breath, you turned to your best friend.

"Talk me down, Blanchett, I'm getting nervous."

"Both of you have been waiting for this day for a good part of nearly a year, Y/ N, there's nothing to get nervous about. Just go out there and marry your woman."

Taking her hand in yours, you gave it a grateful squeeze, "Thanks a lot for being here today, Cate."

She pulled you in a hug and pressed an affectionate kiss on your forehead, "I wouldn't miss it for the world. You're my best friend, I'm always here for you. Now, let's go, your bride is waiting."

The two of you walked hand in hand to the venue, which was just everything you had dreamed, not to mention the other woman standing at the altar.

Cate squeezed your hand reassuringly, and you walked down the aisle, hearing the soft piano music playing. Sarah couldn't help the smile that spread across her face as she looked at the woman she was about to spend the rest of her life with.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the union of these to souls in matrimony. Both of you have prepared vows, Y/N, we shall start with you."

Taking a deep breath, you took Sarah's hand in yours before speaking, "Growing up, I never thought I would ever be the type of person to get married, but that all changed when i met you. I can't picture myself living my life without you by my side. You have always been there for me, and I want to be there for you, every day for the rest of my life.

"You are, hands down, the most amazing person I have ever known. Nobody else could match my craziness half as well as you. Throughout the two years we've been together, you never fail to make me smile and make me feel whole. You are my best friend, my soulmate, and my partner in crime.

"I promise, from this day on, to be your rock, someone you can always rely on, someone to get you out of trouble if you need it. I promise to keep finding new ways to make you laugh and smile, especially when you're getting too serious. I promise to be the shoulder you can cry on whenever you need it. I promise to tell you when what you're doing is right and when it's wrong, but still love and stay with you through your bad decisions. I promise to hold your hand always, through good times and bad times, through everything life may throw at us, because as long as we're together, we can make it through anything.

"So, Sarah Catharine Paulson, I just want you to know that from this day on, as I take your last name and pledge myself to you, I am ready to go on more adventures, get involved in more shenanigans, and start living my life better than I did before, because now I have you by my side forever."

Sarah wiped a tear from her cheek, sniffing, "Shit, I said I wouldn't cry. I love you so much. Vows, vows, okay, here we go.

"I was never one to believe in love at first sight. I, even as a hopeless romantic, didn't think it was entirely possible to fall in love the moment you met, but then it happened to me. I knew you were the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with the moment you first yelled at me. I'd like to share exactly what it was, but I don't think it'd be appropriate.

"I have seen you ugly cry over movies and yet, you never fail to take my breath away. Everything about you, from the way you bite your lips to peel the skin, to the way you drool when you sleep, makes me surer than ever that I am more than ready to be your wife.

"From this day on, I promise to never stop telling you how much I love you, and showing you how much you matter to me. I promise to always be there to wipe away your tears and hold you close until you feel better. I promise never to stop making you sandwiches at midnight and singing with you whenever our favorite songs come on. I promise that always and forever, I will never leave you, and I will be there for you 'til death do us part.

"I know that vows are promises, and I just made a whole lot of them, but all I really want you to know is I love you so much, and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life showing you that."

Both of you were tearing up the whole time, but still smiling, especially as the presider said, "I now pronounce you wife and wife, you may kiss the bride."

The kiss was the most amazing thing you had shared and it was sure to never be forgotten.

The kiss was the most amazing thing you had shared and it was sure to never be forgotten  
At the reception, the two of you had your hands intertwined through everything. Even when Cate and Amanda gave their speeches, or your parents, or her parents, you weren't about to let go.

Except for one moment in which you did have to let go because you had planned a special surprise for your first dance. You walked up to the stage, holding the mic in hand.

"Hey, everyone, uh, anyway, I'm not amazing at public speaking, but I have something to say, or rather, do, before I dance with Sarah."

Everybody's eyes were on you, and you felt the nerves creeping up on you again, but you just nodded at the musicians and started singing.

_**let the bough break, let it come down crashing** _   
_**let the sun fade out to a dark sky** _   
_**I can't say I'd even notice it was absent** _   
_**cause I could live by the light in your eyes** _

_**I'll unfold before you** _   
_**what I've strung together** _   
_**the very first words of a lifelong love letter** _

_**tell the world that we finally got it all right** _   
_**I choose you** _   
_**I will become yours and you will become mine** _   
_**I choose you** _   
_**I choose you, yeah** _

Taking Sarah's hand in yours, you led her onto the dance floor, and started slow dancing, all the while not stopping your song.

_**there was a time when I would have believed them** _   
_**if they told me that you could not come true** _   
_**just love's illusion** _   
_**but then you found me** _   
_**and everything changed** _   
_**and I believe in something again** _

_**my whole heart** _   
_**will be yours forever** _   
_**this is a beautiful start** _   
_**to a lifelong love letter** _

_**tell the world that we finally got it all right** _   
_**I choose you** _   
_**I will become yours and you will become mine** _   
_**I choose you** _   
_**I choose you** _

Her eyes shone with unshed tears as you twirled her around. Miraculously, you weren't out of breath even if you were singing and dancing at the same time.

**_we are not perfect, we'll learn from our mistakes_ **   
**_and as long as it takes I will prove my love to you_ **   
**_I am not scared of the elements, I am underprepared,_ **   
**_but I am willing_ **   
**_and even better_ **   
**_I get to be the other half of you_ **

**_tell the world that we finally got it all right_ **   
**_I choose you, yeah_ **   
**_I will become yours and you will become mine_ **   
**_I choose you_ **   
**_I choose you_ **   
**_I choose you_ **

After the song ended and a new one started, the two of you were just holding each other, gazing into each other's eyes while everyone was dancing around you.

"I love you, Sarah, so much," you said, out of earshot of the mic.

"I love you more, Y/N L/N."

"Don't forget, love, it's Y/N Paulson now."

"'Silly me," Sarah chuckled in mock reproof, "How could I forget? The most beautiful woman in the world is my wife."

"Well, I'd like to think that my wife is the most beautiful woman even off earth."

"Well, that's up for debate, but we have all our lives to argue about who's more attractive."

"I'm going to spend the rest of my life with you. I'm beyond excited."

"I'm fucking ecstatic. Knowing I'll get to see you first thing when I wake up and last thing before going to sleep."

You giggled at her words and pulled her in for a kiss, not caring if anyone was watching.

"I love you so much, Sarah."

"I love you more, always and forever."


End file.
